Stock Market Holidays in 2021
The nine stock market holidays observed by the NYSE and NASDAQ in 2021
About Stock Market Holidays
There are approximately 252 trading days in a year once you account for stock market holidays. These holidays are non-weekend events in which trading does not take place in either the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or the Nasdaq. If one of these holidays falls on a weekend, then it will be observed the Friday before or the Monday After. There are also two partial trading days this year where trading ends early at 1 pm EST instead of the normal time at 4:00 p.m. EST, all other weekdays are open for trading.
List Stock Market Holidays 2021
| New Year’s Day | Friday, January 1 – Closed |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Day | Monday, January 18 – Closed |
| Presidents Day | Monday, February 15 – Closed |
| Good Friday | Friday, April 2 – Closed |
| Memorial Day | Monday, May 31 – Closed |
| Independence Day | Monday, July 5 – Closed |
| Labor Day | Monday, September 6 – Closed |
| Thanksgiving | Thursday, November 25 – Closed |
| Christmas Day | Thursday, December 24 – Closed |
Partial Trading Days
| Black Friday | Friday, November 26 – early close 1 pm EST |
| Christmas Eve | Wednesday, December 23 – early close 1 pm EST |
Other Holidays that the Stock Market is Open On
| Columbus Day | Market is Open |
| Veterans Day | Market is Open |
Why does the Stock Market Close on Holidays?
There are two main reasons the stock market closes on certain holidays. First, is the importance of the holiday to many people and taking time to recognize what the holiday is honoring. Second, is the potential liquidity issue. If the market is open when the majority of people are not going to participate then there will be fewer buyers and sellers in the market leaving it to operate in a suboptimal manner.
Additional resources: https://www.nyse.com/markets/hours-calendars
Additional resources: https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/stock-market-holiday-calendar