diff --git a/src/config/macros.rs b/src/config/macros.rs
index 1da3b9d..ebee6a9 100644
--- a/src/config/macros.rs
+++ b/src/config/macros.rs
@@ -83,12 +83,22 @@ pub async fn macro_execute(
         .bootstrap_tools(app.as_ref(), true, abort_signal.clone())
         .await?;
 
-    for step in &macro_value.steps {
-        let command = Macro::interpolate_command(step, &variables);
-        println!(">> {}", multiline_text(&command));
-        run_repl_command(&mut macro_ctx, abort_signal.clone(), &command).await?;
+    // An in-macro `.agent` step opens the top-level agent bracket on this
+    // fresh context, so it must also close here — on the step-failure path
+    // too, or the run would leak `agent.started` with no terminal event.
+    // Signal-aware like the headless dispatch arms: a ctrl-c'd macro
+    // classifies as interrupted, not failed.
+    let result = async {
+        for step in &macro_value.steps {
+            let command = Macro::interpolate_command(step, &variables);
+            println!(">> {}", multiline_text(&command));
+            run_repl_command(&mut macro_ctx, abort_signal.clone(), &command).await?;
+        }
+        Ok(())
     }
-    Ok(())
+    .await;
+    macro_ctx.top_level_agent_finished(result.as_ref().err(), Some(&abort_signal));
+    result
 }
 
 struct MacroModeGuard<'a> {
diff --git a/src/main.rs b/src/main.rs
index 2c995e2..50d797c 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/src/main.rs
@@ -438,11 +438,12 @@ async fn run(
         ctx.use_agent(app.as_ref(), agent, session, abort_signal.clone())
             .await?;
         // The top-level agent bracket does NOT open here: the inspection
-        // flags below (--list-sessions, --info, --macro, --rebuild-rag,
-        // --init-*) return early without running the agent, and an open
-        // bracket on those paths would leak `agent.started` with no
-        // terminal event. It opens at the dispatch sites further down,
-        // where an agent run is actually committed.
+        // flags below (--list-sessions, --info, --rebuild-rag, --init-*)
+        // return early without running the agent, and an open bracket on
+        // those paths would leak `agent.started` with no terminal event.
+        // It opens at the dispatch sites further down, where a run is
+        // actually committed — including the --macro arm, which executes
+        // rather than inspects.
     } else {
         let app: Arc<AppConfig> = Arc::clone(&ctx.app.config);
         if let Some(prompt) = &cli.temp_role {
@@ -575,8 +576,13 @@ async fn run(
         }
     }
     if let Some(name) = &cli.macro_name {
-        macro_execute(&mut ctx, name, text.as_deref(), abort_signal.clone()).await?;
-        return Ok(());
+        // Dispatch committed: open the top-level agent bracket only now,
+        // past every inspection-flag early return above.
+        ctx.top_level_agent_started();
+        let result = macro_execute(&mut ctx, name, text.as_deref(), abort_signal.clone()).await;
+        ctx.top_level_agent_finished(result.as_ref().err(), Some(&abort_signal));
+        hooks::drain_pending(EXIT_HOOK_DRAIN_TIMEOUT).await;
+        return result;
     }
     if cli.execute && !is_repl {
         // Dispatch committed: open the top-level agent bracket only now,
diff --git a/tests/macro_bracketing.rs b/tests/macro_bracketing.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7c5594c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/macro_bracketing.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,221 @@
+//! Binary-level contract for --macro bracket symmetry: a committed macro
+//! run fires agent.started plus EXACTLY ONE terminal agent event
+//! (agent.completed / agent.failed / agent.interrupted), whether the agent
+//! arrives via the --agent flag or an in-macro `.agent` step, in both
+//! isolation modes, on success and failure alike. The markers ride on
+//! global agent.* hooks admitted through the agent's `global_hooks: ["*"]`
+//! wildcard, so the fixture also exercises the whitelist grammar
+//! end-to-end — and stays observable even if a failing step leaves the
+//! context without a loaded agent.
+
+use std::env;
+use std::fs;
+use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
+use std::process::{Command, Output, Stdio};
+use std::thread;
+use std::time::{Duration, Instant, SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
+
+fn fresh_config_dir(label: &str) -> PathBuf {
+    let unique = SystemTime::now()
+        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
+        .unwrap()
+        .as_nanos();
+    let tmp_dir = env::temp_dir().join(format!("coyote-macro-bracketing-{label}-{unique}"));
+    fs::create_dir_all(&tmp_dir).unwrap();
+    tmp_dir
+}
+
+/// Lays out a config dir with a dry_run model, global agent.* hooks that
+/// append one marker line per event to `log`, a `probe-macro` agent that
+/// whitelists everything, and a `probe` macro with the given YAML body.
+fn write_fixture(dir: &Path, log: &Path, macro_yaml: &str) {
+    let log = log.display();
+    // Without IS_SANDBOX (scrubbed below) a run insists on a vault password
+    // file, so the fixture provides one.
+    let vault_pass = dir.join("vault-pass");
+    fs::write(&vault_pass, "test-password\n").unwrap();
+    fs::write(
+        dir.join("config.yaml"),
+        format!(
+            "model: dryrun:dry-model\n\
+             dry_run: true\n\
+             vault_password_file: {vault_pass}\n\
+             clients:\n\
+             \x20 - type: openai\n\
+             \x20   name: dryrun\n\
+             \x20   auth: none\n\
+             \x20   api_key: 'unused'\n\
+             \x20   models:\n\
+             \x20     - name: dry-model\n\
+             \x20       max_input_tokens: 100000\n\
+             \x20       supports_function_calling: true\n\
+             save: false\n\
+             memory: false\n\
+             stream: false\n\
+             hooks:\n\
+             \x20 agent.started:\n\
+             \x20   - name: mark\n\
+             \x20     command: \"echo STARTED >> '{log}'\"\n\
+             \x20 agent.completed:\n\
+             \x20   - name: mark\n\
+             \x20     command: \"echo COMPLETED >> '{log}'\"\n\
+             \x20 agent.failed:\n\
+             \x20   - name: mark\n\
+             \x20     command: \"echo FAILED >> '{log}'\"\n\
+             \x20 agent.interrupted:\n\
+             \x20   - name: mark\n\
+             \x20     command: \"echo INTERRUPTED >> '{log}'\"\n",
+            vault_pass = vault_pass.display()
+        ),
+    )
+    .unwrap();
+
+    let agent_dir = dir.join("agents/probe-macro");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&agent_dir).unwrap();
+    fs::write(
+        agent_dir.join("config.yaml"),
+        "name: probe-macro\n\
+         description: macro bracketing probe agent\n\
+         version: 0.1.0\n\
+         instructions: |\n\
+         \x20 You are a probe agent. Reply briefly.\n\
+         global_hooks:\n\
+         \x20 - \"*\"\n",
+    )
+    .unwrap();
+
+    let macros_dir = dir.join("macros");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&macros_dir).unwrap();
+    fs::write(macros_dir.join("probe.yaml"), macro_yaml).unwrap();
+}
+
+fn run_coyote(dir: &Path, args: &[&str]) -> Output {
+    Command::new(env!("CARGO_BIN_EXE_coyote"))
+        .args(args)
+        .current_dir(dir)
+        .env("COYOTE_CONFIG_DIR", dir)
+        .env_remove("IS_SANDBOX")
+        .stdin(Stdio::null())
+        .output()
+        .unwrap()
+}
+
+/// Bounded poll for the expected terminal marker. The binary drains pending
+/// hooks before exiting, so the log is normally complete once `output()`
+/// returns; the poll only absorbs filesystem latency, never paces the run.
+fn wait_for_marker(log: &Path, needle: &str) -> String {
+    let deadline = Instant::now() + Duration::from_secs(10);
+    loop {
+        let contents = fs::read_to_string(log).unwrap_or_default();
+        if contents.lines().any(|line| line == needle) {
+            return contents;
+        }
+        assert!(
+            Instant::now() < deadline,
+            "timed out waiting for '{needle}'; log so far: {contents:?}"
+        );
+        thread::sleep(Duration::from_millis(50));
+    }
+}
+
+fn assert_marker_count(contents: &str, marker: &str, expected: usize) {
+    let count = contents.lines().filter(|line| *line == marker).count();
+    assert_eq!(
+        count, expected,
+        "expected {expected}x {marker}: {contents:?}"
+    );
+}
+
+fn assert_started_and_single_terminal(contents: &str, terminal: &str) {
+    assert_marker_count(contents, "STARTED", 1);
+    for marker in ["COMPLETED", "FAILED", "INTERRUPTED"] {
+        let expected = usize::from(marker == terminal);
+        assert_marker_count(contents, marker, expected);
+    }
+}
+
+fn probe_macro_run(label: &str, macro_yaml: &str, args: &[&str], expect_success: bool) -> String {
+    let dir = fresh_config_dir(label);
+    let log = dir.join("agent-events.log");
+    write_fixture(&dir, &log, macro_yaml);
+
+    let output = run_coyote(&dir, args);
+    assert_eq!(
+        output.status.success(),
+        expect_success,
+        "{label}: unexpected exit {:?}\nstdout: {}\nstderr: {}",
+        output.status,
+        String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stdout),
+        String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stderr)
+    );
+
+    let terminal = if expect_success {
+        "COMPLETED"
+    } else {
+        "FAILED"
+    };
+    let contents = wait_for_marker(&log, terminal);
+    let _ = fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+    assert_started_and_single_terminal(&contents, terminal);
+    contents
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn agent_macro_run_fires_started_and_exactly_one_completed() {
+    probe_macro_run(
+        "agent-flag-success",
+        "steps:\n  - \".set temperature 0.5\"\n",
+        &["--agent", "probe-macro", "--macro", "probe"],
+        true,
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn agent_macro_failure_closes_the_bracket_with_exactly_one_failed() {
+    probe_macro_run(
+        "agent-flag-failure",
+        "steps:\n  - \".agent no-such-agent-zz\"\n",
+        &["--agent", "probe-macro", "--macro", "probe"],
+        false,
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn isolated_in_macro_agent_step_fires_started_and_exactly_one_completed() {
+    probe_macro_run(
+        "isolated-step-success",
+        "steps:\n  - \".agent probe-macro\"\n  - \".set temperature 0.5\"\n",
+        &["--macro", "probe"],
+        true,
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn isolated_in_macro_agent_step_failure_closes_the_bracket() {
+    probe_macro_run(
+        "isolated-step-failure",
+        "steps:\n  - \".agent probe-macro\"\n  - \".agent no-such-agent-zz\"\n",
+        &["--macro", "probe"],
+        false,
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn non_isolated_in_macro_agent_step_fires_started_and_exactly_one_completed() {
+    probe_macro_run(
+        "non-isolated-step-success",
+        "isolated: false\nsteps:\n  - \".agent probe-macro\"\n  - \".set temperature 0.5\"\n",
+        &["--macro", "probe"],
+        true,
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn non_isolated_in_macro_agent_step_failure_closes_the_bracket() {
+    probe_macro_run(
+        "non-isolated-step-failure",
+        "isolated: false\nsteps:\n  - \".agent probe-macro\"\n  - \".agent no-such-agent-zz\"\n",
+        &["--macro", "probe"],
+        false,
+    );
+}