Wall Street Holiday: Nasdaq, NYSE to remain closed for trading on January 1 amid New Year celebrations

Wall Street holiday: US stock markets will remain closed on Wednesday, January 1, 2025, in observance of the New Year celebrations. According to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, trading activity on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) will remain closed today for New Year celebrations in the world's largest economy.

The Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange held regular trading on the final day of 2024. The US bond markets closed early on Tuesday, December 31, with trading slated to stop for the year at 2 p.m. ET. US markets will reopen on Thursday, January 2, 2025, for usual trading activity across equities, options, bonds, and derivates. The previous US market holiday was observed on Wednesday, December 25, 2025 on account of Christmas celebrations.

Also Read: Wall Street Holiday: Nasdaq, NYSE to remain closed for trading on December 25 on account of Christmas celebrations

The next scheduled US market closure will occur on Thursday, January 9, 2025, to observe the National Day of Mourning announced by US President Joe Biden, in honor of the death of former US President Jimmy Carter. On December 29, 2024, Carter passed away at the age of 100 and was the longest living US President. He served as the 39th US President from 1977 to 1981 and received the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize for his humanitarian work.

Wall Street closes best two-year winning streak since 1998

US equity benchmarks closed mostly lower on Tuesday, December 31, 2024, as the market delivered a downbeat finish on the final day of another milestone-shattering year on Wall Street. US stocks declined in the final session of the year but still closed out the best two-year run since 1998.

The S&P 500 index gave up an early gain to fall 0.4 per cent in its fourth down day, the longest losing streak to end a year since 1966. The benchmark index, which set 57 record highs in 2024, racked up a 23.3 per cent gain for the year. This was its second straight year with a gain of more than 20 per cent. 

Only about 38 per cent of the stocks in the S&P 500 fell Tuesday, but a slide in technology stocks outweighed gains elsewhere in the market. The S&P 500 fell 25.31 points to 5,881.63 on Tuesday. The Dow lost 29.51 points to close at 42,544.22, and the Nasdaq slid 175.99 points to finish at 19,310.79.

Also Read: Wall Street Holiday: Nasdaq, NYSE closed on January 9 to honor former US President Jimmy Carter’s death on Mourning Day

The last time the index had as big a back-to-back annual gain was in 1998. The index fell 2.5 per cent in December, marking its weakest return since April. It is trading below its 50-day moving average — a key short-term technical support level. Only 18 per cent of stocks are trading above their 50-day moving average.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.1 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.9 per cent. Big Tech stocks led the rally, pushing the Nasdaq to a yearly gain of 28.6 per cent. The Dow, which is far less weighted with tech, rose 12.9 per cent on the year. December was a challenging month for most US indices. The small-cap Russell 2000 is down over eight per cent, the worst monthly performance since September 2022.

A growing economy, consumer spending, and a strong jobs market drove the stellar run of US markets. The rally went beyond stocks in 2024. Bitcoin, which was below $17,000 just two years ago, climbed above $100,000 for the first time. Gold also shattered records on its way to a 27.4 per cent gain for the year.

Also Read: ’Magnificent Seven’ Review: Nvidia soars 183% YTD to lead US tech pack in 2024; Meta ranks second; Full list

Skyrocketing prices for companies in the artificial intelligence (AI) business, such as the chip leader Nvidia and Super Micro Computer, helped lift the indices to new heights. Solid corporate earnings growth also helped. 

Receding US inflation in 2024, which has now gotten closer to the US Fed’s two per cent target, helped Wall Street's sentiment. This raised hopes that the US central bank would deliver multiple interest rate cuts into next year, which would ease borrowing costs and fuel more economic growth.