Skip to content
MarlinFx

Try

    Search every page of marlinfx.com.

    3D illustration: gold bar, oil barrel and dollar coin, the gold, oil and US dollar markets MarlinFx covers
    MarlinFx ยท risk toolkit for funded forex, gold & oil traders

    Don’t fail a prop challenge on a rule you could have checked

    We check loss limits and news windows for you. Free. No signals.

    Check FTMO rules and fees

    Rules read on FTMO’s own page, with the date. Challenge fees apply; outcomes are not guaranteed.

    Independent research No signals, no hype Sources cited & dated Affiliate links disclosed
    3D illustration of the MarlinFx mascot, a leaping blue marlin with a green growth arrow. Brand illustration, not data.

    Start here

    What brings you to MarlinFx?

    3D illustration of a glass shield, standing for protecting a funded account. Illustration, not data.

    Trading a funded account?

    Stop a rule from ending it.

    What you get

    Three checks: before every trade (stop, size, today's limit), before every news release, and before you pay for a challenge. Each links to a free tool.

    Protect your account
    3D illustration of a glass checklist, standing for checks before paying for a challenge. Illustration, not data.

    Thinking of paying for a challenge?

    Seven checks before the fee.

    What you get

    How the daily limit is measured, trailing or static loss, the news rule, holding rules and the real cost of retries, read from FTMO and FundingPips pages with dates.

    Before you pay
    3D illustration of an oil barrel, standing for WTI oil data. Illustration, not market data.

    Trading oil?

    The data behind WTI, sourced.

    What you get

    The MarlinFx Score, 15 supply, demand and macro factors with sources and dates, and the weekly EIA report. A description of the data, not a forecast or a signal.

    WTI Intelligence

    Funded accounts and brokers

    Brokers & prop firms

    Some links are affiliate links: MarlinFx may earn a commission at no extra cost to you, and this never changes what we write. CFDs carry a high risk of losing money, and prop-firm challenges carry fees with no guaranteed outcome.

    AdFTMOSee FTMO plans and fees AdFxProSee FxPro accounts
    3D illustration: glass bear statuette, bearish end of the MarlinFx Score scale 3D illustration: glass bull statuette, bullish end of the MarlinFx Score scale

    MarlinFx Score meter: an illustration, not a reading.

    MarlinFx Intelligence

    What is moving WTI today?

    15 supply, demand and macro factors, each scored by a published rule and combined into one MarlinFx Score. Sources and dates on every number. Not signals, not forecasts.

    Current Market Regime ยท WTI As of

    Neutral

    MarlinFx Score -9 / 100 ยท medium confidence

    โ–ฒ
    Geopolitical risk, US refinery utilization
    โ–ผ
    OPEC supply, China demand indicators

    WTI spot $99.64/bbl (-0.42%) ยท EIA, close 3 Nov 2026

    The balance of factors today, not a forecast or trade signal. See all 15 factors โ†’

    Trading sessions

    Tokyo
    09:00-15:00
    ย 
    London
    08:00-16:00
    ย 
    New York
    08:00-17:00
    ย 
    Vinnytsia
    Local time
    ย 
    Los Angeles
    Local time
    ย 
    Sydney
    Local time
    ย 
    Sound only after your tap. Weekdays, no holiday calendar.

    ticker by TradingView. Loading it connects your browser to TradingView, which may set cookies. Privacy

    Next How MarlinFx works in 3 steps

    How MarlinFx works

    Read. Calculate. Choose.

    Next A free kit to keep your account

    3D illustration: checklist and target, the free Prop Survival Kit for funded-account traders

    Free ยท MarlinFx Member

    Keep your account: a free kit and a Monday email

    Four printable pages (before you pay, before every trade, before every release) and the week's releases with your firm's news windows. No signals, no card.

    What is inside, and what is not: MarlinFx Member.

    Next The live market dashboard

    Live overview ยท third-party data (TradingView)

    Market Dashboard

    Live prices and charts for the markets MarlinFx covers: gold, oil, forex and the US dollar. The quotes come from TradingView and are indicative only, so check your broker for the price you can actually trade.

    Full dashboard โ†’

    Next What moves gold, oil and forex

    Market intelligence

    What moves gold, oil and forex?

    Gold mostly follows real yields and the US dollar, oil follows supply decisions, inventories and geopolitics, and forex follows central-bank rates and US data releases. The cards list the main drivers and the scheduled releases to watch for each market. Context, not signals.

    Fresh from the desk

    Latest analysis

    All analysis โ†’
    Cover graphic: Best Gold Trading Brokers: How to Choose in 7 Checks
    Brokers 5 min read

    Best Gold Trading Brokers: How to Choose in 7 Checks

    No single best gold broker. Seven checks for XAUUSD: regulation, costs, hours, platform, margin, funding and protections, plus the brokers we reviewed.

    Read analysis
    Cover graphic: How FTMO Calculates the Daily Loss and Max Loss Limits: A Worked Example
    Prop firms 4 min read

    How FTMO Calculates the Daily Loss and Max Loss Limits: A Worked Example

    How FTMO measures daily and max loss on the 1-Step and 2-Step Challenge: reset time, static vs trailing floors, equity and a worked example.

    Read analysis
    Cover for "Why Oil Can Move Against the Headline (and What to Do About It)": 3D illustration of a black oil drum with an amber drop symbol beside a glass news panel with an amber arrow pointing the opposite way, standing for oil that can move against the headline. Decorative illustration, not market data.
    Oil 4 min read

    Why Oil Can Move Against the Headline (and What to Do About It)

    Why oil can fall on a bullish-looking report: expectations, other drivers and the release itself. Plus API vs EIA, and what it means on a funded account.

    Read analysis
    Cover for "Trading the EIA Oil Report on a Funded Account: A Wednesday Checklist": 3D illustration of a glass crude oil storage tank with a glowing amber level band and a glass clock, standing for the weekly EIA crude inventory report. Decorative illustration, not market data.
    Oil 4 min read

    Trading the EIA Oil Report on a Funded Account: A Wednesday Checklist

    Before the Wednesday EIA crude inventory report: what FTMO and FundingPips say about news windows, what counts as a violation, and a five-step checklist.

    Read analysis
    Cover for "What Is a CFD Trading Platform? How to Choose One": 3D illustration of a glass trading terminal screen with abstract blue blocks on a stand, standing for a CFD trading platform. Decorative illustration, not market data.
    Brokers 4 min read

    What Is a CFD Trading Platform? How to Choose One

    A CFD trading platform is the software you trade through. What MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView do, what to compare, and a five-step way to choose.

    Read analysis
    Cover for "The Strait of Hormuz and Oil Prices: What Passes Through It and What Changed in 2026": 3D illustration of an oil tanker ship with glowing amber tanks and two black oil drums on dark water, standing for oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. Decorative illustration, not market data.
    Oil 7 min read

    The Strait of Hormuz and Oil Prices: What Passes Through It and What Changed in 2026

    How much oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz, why pipelines cannot replace it, what changed in 2026 and what the EIA and IEA say. Facts, dated and sourced.

    Read analysis

    Why trust MarlinFx

    Does MarlinFx give trading signals?

    No. MarlinFx explains what moves gold, oil and forex and tells you when the data is out, but it never says when to buy or sell. Four principles apply to everything we publish, each documented on its own page.

    We explain the why

    What moves gold, oil and forex: the dollar, yields, macro.

    We stay independent

    Affiliate links never decide our conclusions. All disclosed.

    We're honest about risk

    No hype, no guarantees. Trading carries real risk.

    We cite and date sources

    Facts from official sources. What we cannot verify is marked.

    Where our data comes from: release dates are copied from the official schedules of the BLS, the BEA, the Federal Reserve and the EIA. Oil flow and inventory figures come from the EIA and the IEA. Every article and review lists its sources and the date they were checked.

    Written and maintained by Volodymyr Kravchenko, an independent market researcher who works on Forex, gold, oil and macro data and builds the tools and scores on this site. MarlinFx's authors are not licensed financial advisers.

    Trust centre How our analysis is made Editorial policy How MarlinFx makes money Who writes MarlinFx

    Frequently asked questions

    What is MarlinFx?

    MarlinFx is a free risk toolkit for traders on funded (prop firm) accounts in forex, gold and oil. It reads FTMO and FundingPips rules on their own pages with the date, and gives loss limit and lot size calculators, a news window checker and a US release calendar. No signals, no forecasts.

    Who is MarlinFx for?

    Traders in forex, gold and oil, including those using prop firm accounts, who want sourced research and tools instead of signals: a US release calendar with times in your local time, position size and drawdown calculators, FTMO and FundingPips rules side by side, and WTI with EIA data. Traders in Australia can start on the Australia page (/australia/).

    Where can I follow WTI oil and the weekly EIA report?

    WTI Intelligence (/intelligence/wti/) tracks the MarlinFx Score for WTI and the weekly EIA petroleum report, and the EIA report explained (/analysis/eia-inventory-data-explained/) shows how to read crude stocks, Cushing and refinery use, with links to EIA's own schedule. Pages state their sources and dates.

    Is this financial advice?

    No. All content is educational and for informational purposes only. Trading involves risk, and you should do your own research or consult a professional before making financial decisions.

    Are your broker reviews independent?

    Yes. Some links are affiliate links, but affiliate relationships never determine our conclusions or cause us to hide a product's downsides. We disclose every partnership.

    Which markets does MarlinFx cover?

    Gold (XAU/USD), oil (WTI and Brent), forex (the majors and the US dollar) and the macro data that connects them โ€” interest rates, inflation, jobs data and Treasury yields โ€” plus the trading tools, brokers and prop firms traders use.

    Who writes MarlinFx's content?

    MarlinFx is written and operated by Volodymyr Kravchenko, an independent market researcher. His areas of work are listed on the author page. MarlinFx does not present its authors as licensed financial advisers, and nothing on the site is personal advice.

    How is MarlinFx's analysis created?

    Analysis starts from official data and documentation such as central banks, statistical agencies, exchanges and provider websites. Facts are separated from analysis and opinion, sources are cited and dated, and anything that could not be verified against a current source is marked VERIFY CURRENT DATA. See the methodology page for details.

    How does MarlinFx make money?

    Some links to brokers, prop trading firms and trading tools are affiliate links: if you sign up through them, MarlinFx may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. This does not change what we write or hide a product's downsides. See the affiliate disclosure for the full explanation.

    How do prop firm payouts work?

    After you pass the evaluation, a funded account pays a share of the profit you make, on a schedule the firm sets (first payout waiting period, minimum days, a limit on one day's share of profit and a minimum payout can all apply). The rules differ by firm and by programme and change, so read the payout rules on the firm's own page and check them on the comparison page. VERIFY CURRENT DATA before you pay for a challenge.

    What does a prop firm challenge cost?

    A one-time evaluation fee that grows with the account size, and some firms refund it with the first payout. Fees and offers change often. The cost calculator turns a fee, your pass rate and the number of attempts into an expected cost; treat the result as an illustration, not a forecast.

    Who can open a funded account, and where?

    Eligibility depends on the firm: age, country and sanctions restrictions, identity checks and the platform and markets allowed all differ. The firm's terms are the only authority, so read them before you pay. MarlinFx does not decide who is eligible.

    Does MarlinFx provide trading signals?

    No. We are not a signals service. We explain what is happening in markets and why, and provide tools to help you analyse them โ€” but we never tell you to buy or sell.

    Compare prop firms