Normally, Christmas Eve is a glass-half-full (or glass-half empty, depending on your perspective) situation for investors: The stock market typically takes a half-day on Dec. 24.
But in 2021, the stock market will be closed for all of Christmas Eve in observance of the Christmas Day holiday, which falls on Saturday this year.
And most of us can cast an envious eye on bond traders, who will get even more time off for yuletide merriment. That’s because the bond market will not only be closed on Friday, Dec. 24, but it also will shut down early on Thursday, Dec. 23, closing at 2 p.m. ET.
The following is a schedule of all stock market and bond market holidays for 2020. Please note that regular trading hours for the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Nasdaq Stock Market are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern on weekdays. The stock markets close at 1 p.m. on early-closure days; bond markets close early at 2 p.m.
2021 Market Holidays
Date | Holiday | NYSE | Nasdaq | Bond Markets* |
---|---|---|---|---|
Friday, Jan. 1 | New Year’s Day | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Monday, Jan. 18 | Martin Luther King Jr. Day | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Monday, Feb. 15 | Presidents’ Day/Washington’s Birthday | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Friday, April 2 | Good Friday | Closed | Closed | Early close (Noon) |
Friday, May 28 | Friday Before Memorial Day | Open | Open | Early close (2 p.m.) |
Monday, May 31 | Memorial Day | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Friday, July 2 | Friday Before Independence Day | Open | Open | Early close (2 p.m.) |
Monday, July 5 | Independence Day (Observed) | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Monday, Sept. 6 | Labor Day | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Monday, Oct. 11 | Columbus Day | Open | Open | Closed |
Thursday, Nov. 11 | Veterans Day | Open | Open | Closed |
Thursday, Nov. 25 | Thanksgiving Day | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Friday, Nov. 26 | Day After Thanksgiving | Early close (1 p.m.) |
Early close (1 p.m.) |
Early close (2 p.m.) |
Thursday, Dec. 23 | Day Before Christmas Eve | Open | Open | Early close (2 p.m.) |
Friday, Dec. 24 | Christmas Eve (Christmas Day Observed) | Closed | Closed | Closed |
Friday, Dec. 31 | New Year’s Eve | Open | Open | Early close (2 p.m.) |
* This is the recommended bond market holiday schedule from the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA). This schedule is subject to change.
Stock Market Holiday Observations
When it comes to the stock and bond markets alike, if a holiday falls on a weekend, market closures are dictated by two rules:
- If the holiday falls on a Saturday, the market will close on the preceding Friday.
- If the holiday falls on a Sunday, the market will close on the subsequent Monday.
Stock and Bond Market Hours
The “core trading” stock market hours for the NYSE and Nasdaq are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. However, both exchanges offer premarket trading hours between 4 and 9:30 a.m., as well as late trading hours between 4 and 8 p.m.
Bond markets typically trade between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
The stock markets close at 1 p.m. on early-closure days; bond markets close early at 2 p.m.
Source: kiplinger.com