How do you handle high-impact releases like CPI and payrolls?

US consumer price data and the monthly jobs report can move every dollar pair within seconds. Traders deal with them in very different ways, and it is worth comparing approaches.

The usual options

1. Stay flat. Close positions before the release and wait for the first few minutes to settle.
2. Reduce size. Keep a position but size it for a much larger move than usual.
3. Trade the reaction. Wait for the release, then trade only once direction is clearer.

Things that catch people out

• Spreads can widen sharply in the seconds around a release, and stop orders can fill well away from their level.
• The first move doesn't always last. A strong number can reverse once traders read the details, such as revisions to earlier months.
• Two big releases can land at the same time, from different countries.

Which approach do you use, on which pairs, and what made you settle on it? Describe the process; please don't post trade calls for others to follow.