As the world rings in the New Year, most global stock markets take a break on January 1. However, Indian stock markets will remain open, offering investors a chance to trade even as major international exchanges stay shut.
On Thursday, January 1, leading stock exchanges across the US, UK, Europe, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the UAE will observe a New Year holiday. In contrast, trading will continue as usual on India’s BSE and NSE, with no holiday declared for the day.
Commodity markets will also function partially. The Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) and the National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) will have their morning session open from 9 am to 5 pm, but there will be no trading in the afternoon session.
The markets in some Asian countries will have longer New Year celebrations, i.e., China and Japan not opening on January 2 either, thus making a two-day holiday.
Stock Market Holidays in India for 2026
Indian stock exchanges have already released the official trading holiday calendar for 2026, which includes 15 holidays spread across the year, along with the traditional Muhurat trading session during Diwali.
The markets would have their very first holiday on January 26, Republic Day. Besides that, major festivities are on the way, the important dates of which are Holi (March 3), Ram Navami (March 26), Mahavir Jayanti (March 31), Good Friday (April 3), Ambedkar Jayanti (April 14), Maharashtra Day (May 1), and Eid al-Adha (May 28), among others.
The market will be closed during the latter half of the year religious holidays period, and some of the biggest holidays will be: Muharram (June 26), Ganesh Chaturthi (September 14), Gandhi Jayanti (October 2), Dussehra (October 20), Diwali (November 10), Guru Nanak Jayanti (November 24), and Christmas on December 25.
Markets End the Year on a Positive Note
The last trading day of the year, December 31, noticed the Indian stock markets opening with a good view. In the beginning, the BSE Sensex went up by more than 200 points in the first hour of trading, and the NSE Nifty also crossed the 26,000 mark shortly after. Still, the rise was not that large as in the past, yet the main indices remained slightly in the green, which was supported by Tata Steel, Bharat Electronics, Axis Bank, and Hindustan Unilever.
On the first day of 2023, Indian investors get a special chance to do active trading and kick off the new year, even when most of the global financial world is still on holiday.
