August 2026
On this page
01 · Instruction overview
The month in instruction activity
August’s calendar made activity look quieter: total instructions fell 4.8% versus July, but rose 1.6% on a standardised week. Entry activity rose 8.1%, with FX and Gold gaining share.
Entry versus management and other instructions
Each row shows the composition of all tracked instructions in that window.
02 · Rotation
Where entry activity went
A change in market share and a change in activity answer different questions. Read the class rotation beside the combined share of the leading markets to distinguish a reshuffle from greater concentration.
The asset-class mix
Share of entry-instruction activity in August 2026.
- Foreign exchange35.2%
- Metals32.1%
- Equity indices19%
- Crypto12.3%
- Other1.4%
July 2026 → August 2026
- FX + metals59.7% → 67.3%7.6 pp increase
- Indices + crypto37.8% → 31.3%6.5 pp decrease
Asset-class figures and notes
| Asset class | Activity share | Share change | Activity change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign exchange | 35.2% | +5.6 pp | +28.4% |
| Metals | 32.1% | +2.0 pp | +15.3% |
| Equity indices | 19% | −5.1 pp | −14.7% |
| Crypto | 12.3% | −1.3 pp | −2.8% |
| Other | 1.4% | −1.1 pp | −37.7% |
Foreign exchange
Its share rose by 5.6 percentage points; entry activity rose by 28.4%.
The three leading pairs supplied 53.4% of FX activity.
Metals
Its share rose by 2.0 percentage points; entry activity rose by 15.3%.
Gold is 98.9% of metals activity — the metals category is functionally a gold category.
Equity indices
Its share fell by 5.1 percentage points; entry activity fell by 14.7%.
Nasdaq 100 supplied 41% of index activity.
Crypto
Its share fell by 1.3 percentage points; entry activity fell by 2.8%.
Bitcoin is 98.3% of crypto activity — the crypto category is functionally a bitcoin category.
Other
Its share fell by 1.1 percentage points; entry activity fell by 37.7%.
Energy, single stocks and ETFs, synthetic indices and the remaining long tail.
Contribution and concentration
Contribution to the net activity change
Contribution to the net change in entry activity. Positive and negative contributions can offset; a contribution can exceed 100% when another class offsets part of the change.
- Foreign exchange+103.4%
- Metals+56.5%
- Equity indices−43.7%
- Crypto−4.7%
- Other−11.5%
- Gold share of metals98.9%
- Bitcoin share of crypto98.3%
- Nasdaq 100 share of indices41%
- Three leading pairs share of FX53.4%
04 · Gold
The single leading market by instruction share
Gold is the single leading market by share of entry instructions in this edition. Gold's activity share and historical instruction direction do not establish adoption, execution quality or performance.
Gold’s weekly share of entry activity
Share of entry activity within each labelled weekday window. A single date marks a day at the month boundary; bar height measures share, not volume.
- 3–7 Aug30.3%
- 10–14 Aug29.7%
- 17–21 Aug34%
- 24–28 Aug38%
- 31 Aug33.1%
Explore the market
Gold, beyond the monthly snapshot
Explore XAUUSD with TradingView’s interactive chart. This is the OANDA feed in US dollars. Chart times are in UTC. This live chart updates beyond August 2026; the report’s historical findings remain fixed. Prices can differ from your broker’s feed.
The embedded chart connects to TradingView only when you load it.
08 · Market context
The releases and reference prices behind the month
External market context, published to be useful rather than explanatory. Co-movement does not establish causality, and none of these are event studies.
During the month
7 August
July employment release (NFP)
At 08:30 New York time on 7 August, BLS initially reported a 23,000 decline in July nonfarm payrolls and a 4.1% unemployment rate. This was July’s employment report, released during August.
Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics · original 7 August release
Reading note
The edition compares full source-calendar months. Its monthly instruction figures are not an event-window measurement around this release.
Use the information available on the release date when interpreting historical activity. No announcement-response or causal effect is established here.
12 August
July inflation release (CPI)
July CPI, released on 12 August at 08:30 New York time, rose 0.1% month on month on a seasonally adjusted basis and 3.4% year on year on an unadjusted basis. Core CPI rose 0.2% month on month.
Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 12 August CPI release
Reading note
Monthly activity shares can be read alongside the inflation backdrop, but they do not isolate the instructions sent in response to this release.
The reference month is July. August CPI was not available during August; the two dates must not be conflated.
19 August
July FOMC minutes
The Federal Reserve released the minutes of its 28–29 July meeting on 19 August at 14:00 New York time.
Source: Federal Reserve · FOMC minutes release
Reading note
This date belongs in the month’s information timeline. Pulse’s weekly Gold shares describe the surrounding instruction mix without measuring the announcement’s immediate effect.
Minutes describe the earlier meeting and are not a new August rate decision. Co-occurrence is not a causal test.
26 August
July PCE inflation
The July PCE price index, released on 26 August, rose 0.2% month on month and 3.7% year on year. Excluding food and energy, it rose 0.2% month on month and 3.3% year on year.
Source: US Bureau of Economic Analysis · July income and outlays
Reading note
The late-month price-policy backdrop is external context for the complete edition, rather than an explanation assigned to each instruction.
PCE and CPI are different price measures. These release figures do not establish why any particular instruction was sent.
28 August
Jackson Hole speech
In his 28 August Jackson Hole speech, Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh stressed that inflation remained above target and did not commit to a rate decision.
Source: Federal Reserve · 28 August speech
Reading note
The Gold share chart includes the complete weekday window containing this speech. It measures Gold’s share of entry instructions, not a response attributable to the speech.
Jackson Hole is a policy communication event, not itself a rate decision. No intraday response study is claimed.
Market references
FX · month-end reference prices
From 31 July to 31 August, the Federal Reserve’s New York noon reference rate moved from 1.1519 to 1.1617 USD per euro (+0.85%) and from 159.16 to 159.74 yen per USD (+0.36%). These are reference observations, not broker closes.
Source: Federal Reserve H.10 · 8 September release (August month-end)
Reading note
EUR/USD entry activity changed +43.9% and USD/JPY +26.8% in the complete-month comparison.
Price change and instruction activity use separate denominators. A positive USD/JPY price change means a stronger dollar against the yen; no participation inference or causal conclusion follows.
FX · comparison-price source
The Federal Reserve’s 3 August H.10 release supplies the 31 July comparison observations for the month-end price changes above.
Source: Federal Reserve H.10 · 3 August release (July month-end)
Reading note
The price comparison uses month-end reference observations; Pulse activity compares complete source-calendar months.
External prices and internal instruction shares remain separate statistics. Reference rates can differ from specific broker quotes.
Explore the market
Explore the currency backdrop
Explore EUR/USD and USD/JPY with the watchlist or symbol selector. These OANDA feeds quote US dollars per euro and yen per US dollar, respectively. Chart times are in UTC. This live chart updates beyond August 2026; the report’s historical findings remain fixed. Prices can differ from your broker’s feed.
The monthly observations above are Federal Reserve reference rates. This separate OANDA chart is for exploring price history; it does not reproduce that benchmark series or explain instruction activity.
The embedded chart connects to TradingView only when you load it.
Later revisions
After month-end · the payroll revision
On 4 September, BLS revised July payroll growth from the initial −23,000 to +21,000 and first reported August payroll growth of +162,000.
Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 4 September employment release
Reading note
This later information is included to make the historical record clear. It was not available to explain August instruction activity.
A revised estimate is useful for today’s record but must not replace what was known on 7 August in an event interpretation.
Reference
Go deeper into the data
Open the breakdown that interests you. Every table, definition and source remains available here.
Markets, rankedShares and changes for each leading market
03 · Markets
Where entry-instruction activity went
Market share answers a narrow question: what portion of tracked entry instructions went to each normalised market. It does not establish adoption, popularity, exposure or performance.
Share of entry activity
Leading normalised markets with complete activity comparisons, selected after internal quality safeguards.
| Market | Activity share | Comparison share | Activity change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 31.8% | 29.7% | +15.5% |
| Bitcoin (BTC/USD) | 12.1% | 13.4% | −2.5% |
| EUR/USD | 8% | 6% | +43.9% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 7.8% | 10.1% | −16.6% |
| GBP/USD | 6.2% | 5.6% | +20.3% |
| USD/JPY | 4.5% | 3.9% | +26.8% |
Direction of entry instructionsLong and short shares, by market and asset class
06 · Direction Balance
Direction Balance, weighted by instructions
The activity-weighted long share moved from 50.3% to 55.9%. The activity changes below show whether each side rose or fell.
By asset class
Net long/short bias in percentage points.
By leading market
Net long/short bias in percentage points.
| Series | July 2026 long | August 2026 long | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign exchange | 49.8% | 57.3% | +7.5 pp |
| Metals | 48.2% | 52.6% | +4.4 pp |
| Equity indices | 49% | 54.7% | +5.7 pp |
| Crypto | 58.1% | 61.8% | +3.7 pp |
| Gold | 48.2% | 52.7% | +4.5 pp |
| Bitcoin (BTC/USD) | 58.2% | 62.1% | +3.9 pp |
| EUR/USD | 55.5% | 65.6% | +10.1 pp |
| GBP/USD | 51.1% | 49% | −2.1 pp |
| USD/JPY | 54.6% | 73.2% | +18.6 pp |
| Nasdaq 100 | 49.8% | 53.5% | +3.7 pp |
Persistence across weekdays
Number of weekdays above 50% long and the median daily long share.
| Market | Weekdays above 50% long | Median daily long share |
|---|---|---|
| Gold | 15 of 21 | 52.2% |
| Bitcoin (BTC/USD) | 20 of 21 | 63.2% |
| EUR/USD | 20 of 21 | 67.1% |
| GBP/USD | 9 of 21 | 48.4% |
| USD/JPY | 18 of 21 | 74.9% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 11 of 21 | 51.4% |
The share compares long-directed and short-directed entry instructions. Read their activity changes separately: a higher share can accompany rising or falling activity.
When instructions arrivedHourly patterns, weekdays and weekends
05 · The clock
How instruction activity varied across the day
Automation does not mean around the clock. One hour of the day carries 5.63% of instructions and another carries 1.76% — a 3.2× swing between the busiest and quietest hour. The comparison window's ratio was 3.32×. But that network-wide shape is a weighted average of four very different rhythms, and it should be read alongside the separate class patterns.
Flow by hour of day
Share of the month’s entry instructions in each source-clock hour. These labels are not aligned to market-event times while the storage timezone remains unconfirmed.
Source-clock hours · timezone confirmation pending
Data table — source hours
| Hour | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 00:00–01:00 | 4.48% | +0.1 pp |
| 01:00–02:00 | 4.84% | +0.4 pp |
| 02:00–03:00 | 4.25% | +0.1 pp |
| 03:00–04:00 | 3.77% | -0.2 pp |
| 04:00–05:00 | 3.64% | -0.3 pp |
| 05:00–06:00 | 4.19% | 0 pp |
| 06:00–07:00 | 4.23% | 0 pp |
| 07:00–08:00 | 4.23% | -0.1 pp |
| 08:00–09:00 | 4.15% | -0.3 pp |
| 09:00–10:00 | 4.02% | -0.2 pp |
| 10:00–11:00 | 3.97% | -0.2 pp |
| 11:00–12:00 | 4.22% | -0.2 pp |
| 12:00–13:00 | 4.89% | +0.1 pp |
| 13:00–14:00 | 5.63% | +0.4 pp |
| 14:00–15:00 | 5.44% | +0.3 pp |
| 15:00–16:00 | 4.84% | +0.2 pp |
| 16:00–17:00 | 4.26% | 0 pp |
| 17:00–18:00 | 4.07% | 0 pp |
| 18:00–19:00 | 4.01% | -0.2 pp |
| 19:00–20:00 | 4.01% | 0 pp |
| 20:00–21:00 | 3.39% | -0.1 pp |
| 21:00–22:00 | 1.76% | +0.2 pp |
| 22:00–23:00 | 3.73% | +0.1 pp |
| 23:00–00:00 | 3.97% | +0.2 pp |
Different markets, different hourly patterns
The combined hourly pattern weights each class by its instruction activity. The class-level figures below show how those rhythms differ; source-clock labels remain provisional.
- Foreign exchange17.7%in 12:00–15:591.33×busiest vs quietest hour5%weekend vs weekday rate
- Metals24.9%in 12:00–15:5961.98×busiest vs quietest hour4.6%weekend vs weekday rate
- Equity indices21.4%in 12:00–15:5920.58×busiest vs quietest hour4.3%weekend vs weekday rate
- Crypto17.3%in 12:00–15:591.14×busiest vs quietest hour104.5%weekend vs weekday rate
Data table — rhythm by asset class
| Asset class | Share in 12:00–15:59 | Peak-to-quiet ratio | Weekend vs weekday rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign exchange | 17.7% | 1.33× | 5% |
| Metals | 24.9% | 61.98× | 4.6% |
| Equity indices | 21.4% | 20.58× | 4.3% |
| Crypto | 17.3% | 1.14× | 104.5% |
Metals swing 61.98× between their busiest and quietest hour; crypto swings 1.14×. Read the separate market patterns before applying the combined hourly pattern to one market. These figures do not measure execution or liquidity.
Weekends are a different market mix entirely
Weekend activity is roughly 13% of an average weekday, but its composition is a different market entirely. A weekend instruction can be received when the underlying market is not trading normally — this says nothing about execution or liquidity.
Weekday composition
Weekend composition
Crypto is 8.7% of weekday activity and 67.7% of weekend activity. These are different instruction mixes. Weekend instructions for FX, metals and indices can still be received when those markets are not trading normally; this describes instructions reaching the bridge, not executions, liquidity or fills.
Data table — weekday vs weekend composition
| Asset class | Share of weekday activity | Share of weekend activity |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign exchange | 36.5% | 13.7% |
| Metals | 33.4% | 11.5% |
| Equity indices | 19.9% | 6.4% |
| Crypto | 8.7% | 67.7% |
| Other | 1.5% | 0.7% |
Flow by day of week
Indexed so the average weekday = 100, which corrects for months containing unequal numbers of each weekday.
Data table
| Day | Index | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 101.7 | -1.5 |
| Tue | 101.3 | -2.5 |
| Wed | 101.6 | -1.3 |
| Thu | 101.4 | -0.5 |
| Fri | 94.1 | +5.8 |
| Sat | 9.6 | -0.8 |
| Sun | 17.3 | -2.1 |
Fast facts
August 2026 · source hours
- Busiest hour13:00–14:00 · 5.63%
- Quietest hour21:00–22:00 · 1.76%
- Peak-to-quiet swing3.2× · July 2026: 3.32×
- Strongest 4-hour block12:00–15:59 · 20.8%
- Weekend vs weekday13.4% · of average weekday activity
The weekday index compares average daily entry activity, so a day appearing more often in the month does not automatically get a higher value. This describes historical instruction timing, not a timing recommendation.
How instructions were writtenEntry commands and recognised exit fields
07 · Setup patterns
How the automation was actually written
Entry instructions carry more than a market and a direction. Their command family and recognised exit fields describe how they were constructed. Compare the month-wide mix with the class breakdown before drawing a conclusion from the overall average.
Exit levels attached to entry instructions
Every entry instruction falls into exactly one of these four groups.
- Both SL and TP52.5%4.2 pp decrease
- SL only14.9%6.3 pp increase
- TP only3.5%1.6 pp increase
- Neither field29.1%3.7 pp decrease
What this does not say. Measures whether the parsed entry instruction carried a recognised stop-loss or take-profit field. It does not establish that a position was protected: the field may be invalid, protection may come from EA settings, a later instruction, or strategy logic. It is a measurement of instruction text, not of whether anyone managed their risk.
Data table — exit fields, August 2026
| Group | August 2026 | July 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Both SL and TP | 52.5% | 56.7% | -4.2 pp |
| SL only | 14.9% | 8.6% | +6.3 pp |
| TP only | 3.5% | 1.9% | +1.6 pp |
| Neither field | 29.1% | 32.8% | -3.7 pp |
How field presence changed within each class
Recognised field presence by asset class, in percentage points versus the stated comparison window. The class breakdown shows which movements contribute to the overall change.
| Asset class | SL field | TP field | Neither field |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign exchange | −3.5 pp | −14.9 pp | +3.5 pp |
| Metals | +2.6 pp | +9.1 pp | −6.0 pp |
| Equity indices | +3.7 pp | −3.1 pp | −5.0 pp |
| Crypto | +14.2 pp | +9.7 pp | −16.8 pp |
Field presence is not risk management. It does not establish valid syntax, broker acceptance, successful execution, or that a position was protected.
A useful review question rather than a verdict: where is your exit logic intended to live — in the alert itself, in EA settings, in a later management command, or in the strategy — and is that split deliberate?
How entry commands were constructed
Compare each family’s share with its activity change. A smaller share can still accompany an increase in instructions.
- Direct-entry commands96.3% → 96.8%8.7% increase
- Close-and-reverse entries1.9% → 1.8%1.3% increase
- Pending-entry commands1.8% → 1.4%16.1% decrease
Command families received by the bridge. These are not broker order types, confirmed fills, or executed trades.
Management did not disappear — it changed shape
These changes describe received management commands. They do not establish how the resulting orders were managed.
- Pending-order cancellations+18.3%
- SL/TP modifications+3.9%
- Side-specific closes+4.6%
- Close-all / close-both-side−19.7%
- Percentage-based partial closes−28.7%
- Volume-based partial closes−60.1%
Command changes describe the mix of instructions received. They do not establish whether or how a broker order was changed.
About the data
How to read the numbers
The unit
A tracked instruction is one instruction received by the bridge. It is not a broker fill, an executed order, an open position, or a trading decision.
Direction
Direction describes historical entry instructions, never positions, exposure, sentiment or advice.
Commercial privacy
Pulse publishes instruction-flow aggregates only. Commercial sizing and participant-denominator metrics stay private.
Publication safeguard
Only approved aggregate cells appear; publication-safeguard details remain private.
Never published
No commercial sizing or participant-denominator metrics. No absolute instruction or revenue totals. No broker or prop-firm attribution. No performance or profitability claims.
Publication history
Revision history
Both comparison months have been recomputed in full. The changes below preserve a clear record of the earlier figures.
Partial-month coverage → complete-month coverage
Complete source-calendar months replace the earlier matched partial windows. Both periods now exclude parser-rejected records, malformed command-symbol echoes and obvious placeholder symbols; these eligibility refinements also change the comparison population.
2026-08-27 → 2026-08-31
August coverage now includes the complete month.
2026-07-27 → 2026-07-31
The July comparison is recomputed for the complete month under this edition’s eligibility rules. These figures may differ from the separately published July report.
-0.02 → -4.8
Total instruction-activity change (%): recomputed on full August and July source-calendar months with consistent eligibility.
19.1 → 8.1
Entry instruction-activity change (%): recomputed on full August and July source-calendar months with consistent eligibility.
-23 → -22
Management and other instruction-activity change (%): recomputed on full August and July source-calendar months with consistent eligibility.
65.1 → 64.8
Entry share of all tracked instructions (%): recomputed on full August and July source-calendar months with consistent eligibility.
31.5 → 31.8
Gold share of entry instructions (%): complete-month replacement.
This data comes from strategies running on PineConnector, the TradingView-to-MetaTrader bridge — run yours.