Stock and bond trading will end at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 24, after a regular session on Monday. Both markets will remain closed on Christmas Day, and return to their usual schedules on Thursday, Dec. 26.
Observed holidays are New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Bank Holiday, Spring Bank Holiday, Summer Bank Holiday, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day. If New Year's Day, Christmas Day, and/or Boxing Day falls on a weekend, the following working day is observed as a holiday.
Most stock exchanges are open for around seven to eight hours a day and close for weekends and public holidays. The UK stock exchange opens Monday-Friday between 8am and 4:30pm (GMT) for retail investors.
What are the legal and tax rules around day trading in the UK? The UK doesn't have any specific rules around day trading like the Pattern Day Trader Rule in the US. But it's still important to remember that day trading requires time and commitment, and trading on leverage is risky.
What are the after-market hours? After-hours trading, as the name suggests, takes place after the markets close. For U.S. stock markets, after-hours trading starts at 4 p.m. and can run as late as 8 p.m. ET. On the TSX, the post-trading session runs from 4:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET.
Christmas and Boxing Day are two of the most important holidays globally and have a substantial impact on the Forex market. On Christmas Day (December 25) and Boxing Day (December 26), many financial markets, including those in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe, close for the holiday.
In basic terms, the NASDAQ is a gathering of buyers and sellers of securities, operating both in the U.S. and Europe. It oversees 25 markets, 5 central securities depositories and has one clearing house. The acronym NASDAQ stands for the 'National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations'.
The London Stock Exchange does not open at weekends. During normal working weeks, trading occurs between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. A full list of trading hours can be found on the LSE's website. One caveat is that the exchange follows English bank holidays, while Scottish and Northern Irish holidays are different.
Such mock trading exercises are periodically conducted by the exchange to test system performance, help members familiarize themselves with the setup, and ensure smooth functioning of live markets.
A settlement holiday is a day when the stock markets are closed, but you can trade-in your investments through an online platform. Settlement holidays are also called transfer holidays because you can move your shares from one broker to another if you have invested in mutual funds or stocks.
Apart from this, trading will remain suspended on weekends — Saturdays (7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th) and Sundays (1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th). Therefore, the stock market will be closed in December for 10 days, leaving only 21 trading sessions remaining for the year.
Stock Market Half-Days (Open from 9:30 AM - 1PM EST): The Thursday before Independence Day (July 3) Day after Thanksgiving Day (November 28) Christmas Eve (December 24)
Early May Bank Holiday – Monday, 5th May 2025. Spring Bank Holiday – Monday, 26th May 2025. Summer Bank Holiday – Monday, 25th August 2025. Christmas Day 2025 – Thursday, 25th December 2025.
With 36 days a year, Nepal is the country with the highest number of public holidays but it observes six working days a week. India ranks second with 21 national holidays, followed by Colombia and the Philippines at 18 each. Likewise, Japan, China and Hong Kong enjoy 17 public breaks a year.
