The U.S. stock markets, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq, operate on a normal trading schedule on Veterans Day. Although it is a national federal holiday, it is not one of the official holidays observed by the major U.S. equity exchanges. Therefore, stock trading proceeds without interruption on this day.
The distinction lies in the separate holiday schedules followed by different financial institutions. The NYSE and Nasdaq determine their own calendars, which do not include Veterans Day. In contrast, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) recommends a full market closure for the trading of U.S. government securities and other fixed-income instruments. As a result, the U.S. bond market is closed on Veterans Day. This observance aligns with the federal holiday schedule, which also sees Federal Reserve Banks and most commercial banks close for the day.
For investors and traders, the practical implication is a bifurcated market environment. While the equity markets are fully functional for buying and selling stocks, the bond markets are inactive. The closure of banks and the bond market can sometimes contribute to lower-than-average trading volume in stocks, but it does not halt their trading. The key takeaway is that stock trading is operational, while bond trading is suspended in observance of the holiday.
