diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index b17254f..4019840 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -5,7 +5,8 @@
 # Docker Compose automatically reads .env from project root
 
 # AI Model API Configuration
-OPENAI_API_BASE=https://your-openai-proxy.com/v1
+# OPENAI_API_BASE: Leave empty to use default OpenAI endpoint, or set to custom proxy URL
+OPENAI_API_BASE=
 OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_key_here # https://platform.openai.com/api-keys
 
 # Data Source Configuration
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 8b9a360..1af65dd 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -3,7 +3,12 @@ FROM python:3.10-slim AS base
 
 WORKDIR /app
 
-# Install dependencies
+# Install system dependencies
+RUN apt-get update && \
+    apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends netcat-openbsd && \
+    rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
+
+# Install Python dependencies
 COPY requirements.txt .
 RUN pip install --no-cache-dir -r requirements.txt
 
diff --git a/entrypoint.sh b/entrypoint.sh
index f283cd7..7f76d0e 100755
--- a/entrypoint.sh
+++ b/entrypoint.sh
@@ -53,7 +53,30 @@ MCP_PID=$!
 
 # Step 3: Wait for services to initialize
 echo "⏳ Waiting for MCP services to start..."
-sleep 3
+sleep 5
+
+# Verify MCP services are responsive
+echo "🔍 Checking MCP service health..."
+MAX_RETRIES=10
+RETRY_COUNT=0
+SERVICES_READY=false
+
+while [ $RETRY_COUNT -lt $MAX_RETRIES ]; do
+    # Check if all ports are listening
+    if nc -z localhost 8000 && nc -z localhost 8001 && nc -z localhost 8002 && nc -z localhost 8003; then
+        SERVICES_READY=true
+        echo "✅ All MCP services are ready"
+        break
+    fi
+    RETRY_COUNT=$((RETRY_COUNT + 1))
+    echo "⏳ Waiting for services... (attempt $RETRY_COUNT/$MAX_RETRIES)"
+    sleep 1
+done
+
+if [ "$SERVICES_READY" = false ]; then
+    echo "⚠️  Warning: Some MCP services may not be ready"
+    echo "   Check logs in /app/logs/ for details"
+fi
 
 # Step 4: Run trading agent with config file
 echo "🤖 Starting trading agent..."