U.S. Stock Market Holidays (2024 - 2027)

In 2024, the U.S. stock market will be closed for a holiday on the following dates:

• New Year's Day on January 1st,
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on January 15th,
• Washington’s Birthday on February 19th,
• Good Friday on March 29th,
• Memorial Day on May 27th,
• Juneteenth National Independence Day on June 19th,
• Independence Day on July 4th,
• Labor Day on September 2nd,
• Thanksgiving Day on November 28th, and
• Christmas on December 25th.

In 2024, the U.S. stock market will be closed at 1:00 p.m. ET for a partial holiday on the following dates:

• Day before Independence Day on July 3rd,
• The Day Following Thanksgiving on November 29th, and
• Christmas Eve on December 24th.

The bond market follows the same schedule as the U.S. stock market with the addition of two holidays. The additional bond market holidays are:

• Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples' Day (this occurs annually in October) and
• Veterans' Day (November 11 or on the weekday it is observed if the holiday falls on a weekend).

Additionally, the bond markets close early on several days that are different from the stock market. Bond traders should be aware that the bond markets shut early on the following days:

• Day before Good Friday (Close at 2 pm),
• Day before Memorial Day (Close at 2pm),
• Day before Independence Day (Close at 2pm), and
• Day before Thanksgiving Day (Close at 2pm).

The stock market maintains a full day of trading on New Year’s Eve. This happens even when New Year’s Day occurs on a weekend. This is due to a provision in Rule 7.2 of the New York Stock Exchange. The rule states that the NYSE will close on either the Friday or Monday when a holiday falls on a weekend. But there is a provision when “unusual business conditions exist, such as the ending of a monthly or yearly accounting period.” Because New Year’s Eve is the end of a month, quarter, and year the markets stay open.

However, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, which is the trading body that oversees fixed-income trading recommends shorter bond markets hours with the market closing at 2:00 p.m.

The U.S. stock exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the NASDAQ Stock Market, are open to investors from Monday through Friday from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM Eastern Time.

• NASDAQ after-hours trading sessions are from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM Eastern Time.
• NYSE after-hours trading sessions are from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM Eastern Time.
• Pre-market trading hours are from 4:00 AM Eastern to 9:30 AM Eastern Time.
• The U.S. markets are closed on Saturdays and Sundays.
• Normal U.S. stock market hours occur from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM Eastern Time, Pre-market trading from 4:00 AM to 9:30 AM Eastern Time, and after hours trading from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM.

There are a number of special rules that dictate when certain holidays are celebrated by financial markets and under what circumstances the stock market will be closed:

• The day after Thanksgiving is not an official holiday. However, Wall Street has a tradition of closing at 1:00 PM on that Friday.
• The day before Independence Day (July 3rd) is not an official holiday. However, the stock market has a tradition of closing at 1:00 PM on that day if it falls during the week.
• When a stock market holiday falls on a Saturday, the market will be closed on the preceding Friday.
• When a stock market holiday falls on a Sunday, the market will be closed on the following Monday.
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is always celebrated on the third Monday in January.
• Washington's Birthday, also referred to as Presidents Day, is celebrated on the third Monday in February.
• Good Friday is celebrated on the Friday before Easter Sunday.
• Memorial Day is celebrated on the last Monday in May.
• Labor Day is celebrated on the first Monday in September.
• Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November.
• The stock market closes at 1:00 PM Eastern on Christmas Eve if it falls during the week and remains closed on Christmas Day.
• The stock market remains open on some federal holidays, bank holidays and religious celebrations, including Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Election Day, Easter Monday, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Boxing Day.
• The stock market can close for reasons other than holidays, such as extreme weather events, terrorist attacks, and major technical issues with an exchange's trading platform.

• The day before the 4th of July, U.S. stock exchanges open at 9.30 AM Eastern Time and close at 1.00 PM Eastern Time.
• On Black Friday, which is the day after Thanksgiving, the U.S. stock exchanges open at 9.30 AM Eastern Time and close at 1.00 PM Eastern Time.
• Usually if Christmas Eve falls during the week, U.S. stock exchanges open at 9.30 AM Eastern Time and close at 1.00 PM Eastern Time.

NYSE holidays are the same as the NASDAQ holidays. The market closes on New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents Day (Washington's Birthday), Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.

The NYSE and NASDAQ adhere to the federal government's holiday schedule for closings, except for Veterans Day (open), Columbus Day (open), and Good Friday (closed).

Holidays can impact stocks and the U.S. stock market in several ways:

• The price of shares often rises or falls during holidays because of the number of active trades.
• Stock markets do well in January because investors feel more optimistic about the new year ahead or have more fresh capital available.
• Trading falls during summer because the largest traders go on vacation and reduce risk by selling volatile assets.
• The price of shares often rallies before a three-day holiday.

When the markets close, investors have more time to reflect on their investment strategies. An investor might read a financial journal to catch up on the latest news, reading about insider trades, NASDAQ biggest losers, or marketing activity. Catching up on the latest market news will create an overview of what is happening. An investor might also improve their financial literacy by reading a dividend investing guide to learn more about stocks to short, trading volumes, the most active stocks, or market liquidity. All this reflection about the market often gives investors insights on how to improve their investment strategy.

Since holidays are typically happier times of the year, they can relieve the relentless stress of active trading. This positivity and optimism influence trading after the holidays.

Statistically, pre-holiday and post-holiday mood changes can affect equities. Stocks markets gain on the day before a holiday, and the volume of trading can be ten times larger after a holiday. However, these noticeable market trends only occur if the holiday involves a long weekend.

NASDAQ, an acronym for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations, founded by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), headquartered in New York, NY, offered the first electronic exchange in the world when it launched on February 8, 1971, allowing investors to use computers to quickly and transparently buy and sell stocks, obviating the need for a trading floor.

However, when traders talk about the NASDAQ, they are not always referring to the exchange itself, but to the NASDAQ Composite Index, a statistical measure of a part of the market. You can infer a trader’s meaning by the context of a statement. For instance, an online discussion about whether the NASDAQ is up or down for the day refers to the NASDAQ Composite Index.

NASDAQ owns NASDAQ BX(previously called the Boston Exchange), and NASDAQ PSX(previously called the Philadelphia Stock Exchange).In 2007, NASDAQ also acquired the Boston Stock Exchange(BSE) which includes the Boston Equities Exchange(BEX) and the Boston Options Exchange(BOX).

If you are an investor or trader with a position in foreign stock, remember that all countries have their own stock market holiday schedule. A foreign stock exchange may be open on days when the U.S. stock market is closed and vice versa.

Depending on the country, the same type of holiday may fall on different dates or the holiday may be entirely different. For example, Thanksgiving in the United States and Canada falls on different dates. In the United States, it falls on the fourth Thursday in November, but in Canada, it falls on the second Monday in October.

Although a Canadian civic holiday works similarly to a U.S. federal holiday, there are important differences. While both are public holidays, a Canadian civic holiday isn't statutory. Most employees take the day off, but some go to work. Canada also has federal holidays. For instance, Victoria Day to honor Queen Victoria's birthday is a federal public holiday. Learn more about Canadian market holidays

When planning your trading strategies, adhere to stock market holiday dates by country.

Knowing when the U.S. stock markets close before national holidays can have a significant impact on your trading strategy since share prices typically rally before a holiday. For example, big buys or sells occur before Thanksgiving - a seasonal trend analysts attribute to a more buoyant mood.

While, of course, there is no singular holiday trading strategy that promises a higher trading success rate, one popular idea traders favor is to buy shares a day or two before a holiday. This is because many traders reduce their risk by selling some of their riskier stocks to mitigate their financial risk. They sell their most volatile stocks because they want to be free to enjoy their holidays rather than hear bad news when they return. Since stock prices fall before a holiday, the pre-holiday days are a good time to buy promising equities at a bargain price.

Remembering the stock market holiday schedule is useful information that can help you prosper. However, when looking at the big picture, when the stock markets are open should not have a significant impact on your overall trading strategy.