You've probably been there. It’s Monday morning, you've got your coffee in hand, and you’re ready to check how your portfolio is holding up after the weekend drama. You fire up your brokerage app, but the numbers aren't moving. Nothing. Then it hits you: Is the market even open today?
Honestly, the answer usually depends on which Monday we’re talking about, but for this specific Monday, January 19, 2026, the short answer is a hard no. The doors are locked.
Is Stock Market Open on Monday? The January 19 Status
The U.S. stock market—specifically the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq—is closed this Monday, January 19, 2026. This isn't just a random break; it’s in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Since this is a federal holiday, the big players are taking the day off. This includes not just the floor traders in Manhattan, but also the massive data centers that process your limit orders and market sweeps.
If you try to place a trade, it’ll likely just sit there as a "pending" order until Tuesday morning.
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Why the Bond Market is Different
Sometimes people think if the stocks are closed, everything else must be too. Mostly true, but the bond market is a bit of a different beast. Managed by SIFMA (the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association), the bond market generally follows the federal calendar even more strictly than the stock market does.
For MLK Day 2026, the bond market is also fully closed. No Treasury yields to obsess over today.
What About Futures and Crypto?
Now, this is where things get kinda interesting. Just because the NYSE is dark doesn't mean the whole financial world stops spinning.
- Crypto Markets: Bitcoin doesn't care about federal holidays. Or sleep. Or Mondays. The crypto market stays open 24/7, so if you're looking for some price action, that’s where you’ll find it.
- Futures: The CME Group (where things like S&P 500 futures trade) usually runs on an abbreviated schedule. They might open on Sunday night like usual, but they often halt trading early on Monday afternoon—typically around 1:00 PM ET—for the holiday.
You’ve gotta be careful with holiday futures trading, though. Liquidity is paper-thin. When there aren't many people trading, prices can jump around like crazy on tiny news, which makes it easy to get "whipsawed" if you aren't paying attention.
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Looking Ahead: The 2026 Market Holiday Calendar
It feels like we just finished the New Year's break, and here we are with another long weekend. If you’re trying to plan your trading week, it helps to know when the next "dark" days are coming.
The markets will be back at it on Tuesday, January 20, at the usual 9:30 AM ET bell. But keep these upcoming 2026 closures on your radar so you don't get caught off guard again:
- Presidents' Day: Monday, February 16. (Closed)
- Good Friday: Friday, April 3. (Closed)
- Memorial Day: Monday, May 25. (Closed)
- Juneteenth: Friday, June 19. (Closed)
The "Holiday Effect" on Trading Volume
There is this weird thing that happens around these three-day weekends. Volume usually dries up on the Friday before and stays low on the Tuesday after.
Professional traders at the big banks—the ones moving millions of shares—often take the extra day to travel or just unplug. When they’re gone, the market is mostly driven by retail investors and automated algorithms.
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This lack of "smart money" volume can lead to some pretty boring, sideways trading. Or, if there’s a major geopolitical event over the weekend, the "gap up" or "gap down" on Tuesday morning can be massive because there was no Monday session to act as a pressure valve.
Actionable Steps for Tuesday’s Reopening
Since you can't trade today, the best move is to prep for when the bell rings tomorrow.
Review your stop-losses. A lot can happen in three days. Check if any news broke over the weekend that might make you want to tighten up your exits.
Watch the European and Asian markets. They don't celebrate MLK Day. If the FTSE 100 in London or the Nikkei in Tokyo is tanking on Monday while we’re closed, expect a volatile opening in New York on Tuesday.
Check the earnings calendar. Late January is prime time for earnings season. Use this Monday to dive into the balance sheets of the companies reporting later this week. It’s a lot more productive than staring at a static ticker.
The market might be closed, but the research side of your brain should probably stay open.