Is the Stock Market Open on Martin Luther King Day?

Is the stock market open on Martin Luther King Day? The answer to this question is no. The stock market will be closed Monday, Jan. 16, for MLK Day, as the holiday is also known.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day became a federal holiday in 1983, when it was signed into law by then President Ronald Reagan. The three-day weekend marks the second stock market holiday of 2023, as the equities market was closed on Monday, Jan. 2, in observance of New Year's Day.

Dr. King's birthday is actually Jan. 15, but the MLK holiday doesn't necessarily occur on that exact date, as is the case in 2023. While Martin Luther King Jr. Day is meant to celebrate Dr. King's birthday, the federal holiday is observed on the third Monday in January, regardless of the date on which that day falls. 

Subscribe to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance

Be a smarter, better informed investor.

Save up to 74%

Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters

Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.

Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.

Sign up

Bond traders will get the day off, too, with the bond market closed on Monday, Jan. 16, for MLK Day.

For those wondering what time does the market open for regular trading hours, both the Nasdaq Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) run from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern time Monday through Friday.

Are the banks open on Martin Luther King Day? The answer to that question is no. Monday, Jan. 16, is one of 11 bank holidays in 2023.

Below, we feature a full schedule of all stock market and bond market holidays for 2023. Please note that the list of stock market holidays actually grew by one day in 2022. That's because Congress voted in 2021 to make Juneteenth – the June 19 holiday commemorating the end of slavery – the 12th federal holiday. When President Joe Biden signed the bill, Juneteenth became the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

2023 Market Holidays

* This is the recommended bond market holiday schedule from the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA). This schedule is subject to change.