By Volodymyr Kravchenko Updated
Gold · Forex · Oil · Macro
Analysis
Sourced guides and analysis across gold, forex, oil and macro, each with dates and named authorship.
Marlin's analysis explains what moves gold, oil, forex and macro markets. Each article has a named author, publication and update dates and cited sources, and facts are kept separate from opinion. Articles are educational, not trading signals.
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All analysis and guides
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Smart Money Concepts (SMC) Explained: Terms, Evidence and How to Test It
What SMC terms like order blocks, liquidity sweeps, BOS, CHoCH and fair value gaps mean, what the evidence says, and how to test SMC before you risk money.
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What Is Brent Crude Oil? The Name, the Price and the $200 Question
Why Brent is called Brent, who owns it, how it differs from WTI, where to check today's price, and what oil price history says about $100 and $200 a barrel.
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Best Brokers for TradingView in 2026: Gold, Oil & Forex
Which brokers let you trade gold, oil and forex directly from TradingView charts, how the connection works, and what to check before you pick one.
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Bitcoin and Gold Correlation in 2026: What It Means for Gold Traders
Bitcoin's 90-day correlation with gold rose above 0.5 in 2026 as its link to tech stocks weakened. What the numbers mean, their limits and how to check them.
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Trading Gold with FxPro: Symbols, Hours, Costs and Sizing (2026)
How gold trading works at FxPro: GOLD, GOLDoz and weekend GOLD365, contract sizes, UTC hours, spread, commission and swap, with worked sizing examples.
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EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report: How Oil Traders Read It
What the EIA's Weekly Petroleum Status Report contains, when it is released, why Cushing matters for WTI and how to read it beyond the headline.
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Gold vs DXY: Why the Dollar Often Moves Against Gold
Why gold and the US Dollar Index often move in opposite directions, what DXY really measures, when the link breaks and how to test it yourself.
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Gold and Real Yields: Why Opportunity Cost Matters
Why rising real yields have often pressured gold, what a real yield is, why the link is unstable, and how to test it yourself with official data.
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How to Analyze Gold Before the US Session: A 15-Minute Routine
A 15-minute pre-session routine for XAU/USD: check scheduled US data, mark levels, read the dollar and real yields, plan scenarios and size risk first.
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TradingView vs MetaTrader 5: What Each One Is For, and Whether You Need Both
TradingView is a charting and analysis platform; MetaTrader 5 is a broker-supplied trading terminal. How they differ, who each suits, and how they combine.
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What Moves Gold Prices? The Four Drivers Traders Watch
The World Gold Council groups gold's drivers into four factors. See what each means, how their weights shift, and a checklist for reading XAU/USD.
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Best CFD Brokers & Trading Platforms in 2026: How to Choose
CFD brokers for gold, oil and forex compared: who regulates each one, which platforms they offer, and what changes if you live in the UK, EU or UAE.
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How to Trade Forex: A Beginner's Guide
A clear beginner's guide to trading forex — how currency pairs work, what moves them, the tools you need and how to manage risk, without hype or false promises.
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How to Trade Gold (XAUUSD): A Beginner's Guide
How to trade XAUUSD (gold): what moves XAU/USD, how to read the market, the tools you need and the mistakes to avoid, without hype or false promises.
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How to Trade Oil (WTI & Brent): A Practical Guide
A clear guide to trading crude oil: WTI vs Brent, what drives prices, the key data to watch and how to manage volatility, without hype.
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MT4 vs MT5 vs cTrader: Which Trading Platform Should You Use?
MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and cTrader compared: the differences that matter, who each platform suits, and how to choose for forex, gold and oil.
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What Is Spread Betting? A UK Trader's Guide
A clear explanation of spread betting — how it works, how it differs from CFDs, its tax treatment in the UK, and the risks to understand before you start.
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WTI vs Brent: The Difference Between the Two Oil Benchmarks
The difference between WTI and Brent crude: where each is priced, why the gap (the spread) moves, and how traders read it. Live chart link included.
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What Drives Oil Volatility: OPEC, Inventories and Geopolitics
Crude oil is one of the most volatile markets. Here are the recurring catalysts that move WTI and Brent, and how to build a routine around them.
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