How often forecasts update and stay valid

Traders often ask two practical questions when they open a chart: how often does 4CastMachine AI recalculate each timeframe, and is a forecast that was published a few hours ago still valid to trade right now?

This lesson gives you the exact analysis schedule from 5m to M, explains why forecast validity depends on the Pivot price rather than the clock, and shows what triggers a new forecast notification on intraday vs. daily timeframes.

How often does 4CastMachine AI analyze each timeframe?

The 4CastMachine AI engine checks every supported symbol at the natural rhythm of each timeframe's candles:

Timeframe	Analysis cycle	Checks per 24-hour day	When a new row is published
5m (Forex)	Every 5 minutes	288 times per day	Whenever 5m direction or pivot structure changes.
15m	Every 15 minutes	96 times per day	Whenever 15m direction or pivot structure changes.
30m	Every 30 minutes	48 times per day	Whenever 30m direction or pivot structure changes.
1h	Every 1 hour	24 times per day	Whenever 1h direction or pivot structure changes.
4h	Every 4 hours	6 times per day	Whenever 4h direction or pivot structure changes.
D, W, M	Every Saturday (Weekly Forecasts) + daily structural checks	Weekly baseline + event-driven updates	Every Saturday before the market opens, and mid-week if a major market shift changes the daily structure.

Why does a new analysis cycle not always change the forecast?

Running an analysis every 15 minutes on 15m does not mean the arrows and zones jump to a new place every 15 minutes. If a forecast jumped on every candle, you could never plan a trade or keep a consistent stop loss.

When the engine analyzes a new candle and sees that the current trend, Pivot, and zone boundaries are still intact, it keeps the existing forecast locked in place. A new forecast replaces the old one only when the underlying market structure actually changes.

What counts as a new forecast on intraday vs. daily charts?

Our notification engine uses different change-detection rules for fast intraday charts versus the daily (D) chart:

• On intraday timeframes (5m, 15m, 30m, 1h, and 4h): A forecast counts as new when its direction flips (Bullish ↔ Bearish) or its Pivot price changes. Minor candle-to-candle noise inside the same pivot structure does not spam you with redundant alerts.

• On the Daily timeframe (D): Because swing traders manage multi-week setups on the daily chart, a daily forecast counts as new whenever any of its six core elements changes: its direction, its Pivot, its green forecast arrows, its take-profit levels, its Buy zone, or its Sell zone.

How do I check if a forecast is still valid right now?

Whether a forecast was published 5 minutes ago or 8 hours ago, run this 3-step price check on the chart before entering:

1. Has price broken the Pivot? Check the panel label (for example, Bullish above 1.12060 on EURUSD 1h or Bullish above 78894.89 on BTCUSD 1h). If price is still above the pivot, the bullish structure is intact. If price broke below the pivot into the Reverse zone, the main path is over and the dashed alternate path is active.

2. Where is price relative to the Buy/Sell zone and Profit zone? If price is inside or pulling back toward the Buy zone (or Sell zone) and forms a confirming candle, the entry is fresh. If price has already rallied all the way into the Profit zone and hit TP4 or TP5, the wave has already played out, so do not chase it at the top.

3. Check the timestamp badge in the 4CastMachine AI panel: Hover or look at the freshness label beside the timeframe row (such as Just now or 2h ago). If a market is temporarily between setups and shows Last saved forecast, treat it as historical context and wait for an active live forecast before opening a new trade.

Where do I go next?

Now that you know how forecasts update and stay valid, open Lesson 7: Automate forecasts with alerts, AI, and risk rules to put the entire workflow on autopilot.