Is the Stock Market Open on Christmas Eve 2026? SIX Swiss Hours
December 24
Is the Stock Market Open on Christmas Eve 2026? SIX Swiss Hours
SIX Swiss Exchange are closed on Thursday, for Christmas Eve.
- Next holiday
- Christmas Day, December 25, 2026
- Regular hours
- 9:00 am to 5:30 pm CET/CEST
Full schedule and background: SIX Swiss Holidays.
Updated
The SIX Swiss Exchange is closed on Thursday, December 24, 2026 for Christmas Eve. No equities, bonds or derivatives trade on the Swiss market that day, and any order queued for that session will be held and processed when trading resumes. This follows the standard Swiss market calendar published by SIX Group. For the full list of dates, see the SIX Swiss holiday calendar.
Because Christmas Eve falls in the same week as Christmas Day and, this year, close to the New Year period, traders in Zurich, Geneva and Basel face a run of shortened weeks. Settlement of any trade executed on the last open session before December 24 will be pushed back to account for the closure, and investors with pending transfers or fund switches should expect a short delay.
Which markets are closed on Christmas Eve 2026?
| Market | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SIX Swiss Exchange (equities) | Closed | No cash equity trading in Zurich |
| SIX Swiss Exchange (bonds) | Closed | Swiss bond market follows the same exchange calendar |
| Eurex derivatives (Swiss-linked contracts) | Closed | Eurex typically observes a shortened or closed session around Christmas Eve; check Eurex’s own calendar for confirmation |
| London Stock Exchange (LSE) | Open (regular hours) | UK markets do not close for Christmas Eve, though volumes are usually thin |
| Euronext (Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels) | Open (regular hours) | Euronext markets typically trade a full or slightly shortened session on December 24 |
| Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) | Open (regular hours) | Japan does not observe Christmas as a market holiday |
| New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq | Early close | US markets typically close early at 1:00 pm ET on December 24 when it falls on a weekday, ahead of the Christmas Day holiday |
Always check the exchange’s own published calendar close to the date, since some venues adjust hours at short notice around the festive period.
Is the market open the day before and after?
The trading session before December 24, 2026 (Wednesday, December 23) runs on normal Swiss hours of 9:00 am to 5:30 pm CET/CEST. SIX Swiss Exchange then remains closed on December 24 and again on Friday, December 25, 2026 for Christmas Day, so Swiss investors face two consecutive non-trading days. The next open trading session on the Swiss market is expected to be Monday, December 28, 2026, assuming no further holiday falls in between. SIX Swiss Exchange does not typically apply a separate early close on December 24 itself, since the whole day is a closure rather than a shortened session, though market participants should confirm final scheduling on the SIX Group trading calendar closer to the date.
Why do markets close for Christmas Eve?
Christmas Eve closures reflect long-standing European tradition rather than a single piece of legislation. In Switzerland and much of continental Europe, December 24 is treated as part of the wider Christmas period, when banks, exchanges and many businesses either close entirely or operate reduced hours so staff can travel and prepare for the holiday.
Exchange operators such as SIX Group set their annual calendars in advance, balancing continuity of trading with the practical reality that liquidity thins sharply in the days around Christmas. Closing outright on December 24, rather than running a token session, avoids the risk of erratic pricing on very low volume.
What It Means for Your Money
If you have a pending order on a Swiss-listed stock, fund or bond, it will simply wait in the queue and execute once trading resumes, most likely on December 28, 2026. Settlement, the process of finalising ownership and payment after a trade, is delayed by the closure, so anyone relying on cash from a Swiss sale landing in their account should build in an extra day or two.
Dividend payments and any options or futures expiries scheduled around this date may shift to the next business day, so check the specific instrument’s calendar if you hold Swiss-listed derivatives. Bank transfers within Switzerland may also be slower over the holiday period, and payroll runs timed for late December sometimes move earlier to avoid the closure. Cryptocurrency markets are unaffected, since they trade 24 hours a day, seven days a week, regardless of exchange holidays.
Remaining SIX Swiss holidays in 2026
- Christmas Day, December 25, 2026 (closed)
- New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2026 (closed)
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the stock market open on Christmas Eve 2026?
No, the SIX Swiss Exchange is closed on Thursday, December 24, 2026 for Christmas Eve.
Is the bond market open on Christmas Eve 2026?
No, the Swiss bond market follows the same exchange calendar and is closed alongside equities on December 24, 2026.
What time does the Swiss market close before the holiday?
On the prior trading day, Wednesday, December 23, 2026, SIX Swiss Exchange trades its regular hours of 9:00 am to 5:30 pm CET/CEST, with no early close scheduled ahead of the holiday itself.
When is the next Swiss market holiday after Christmas Eve?
The next closure is Christmas Day on Friday, December 25, 2026, followed by New Year’s Eve on December 31, 2026.
Are Swiss banks open on Christmas Eve 2026?
Many Swiss banks reduce hours or close early on December 24, though this varies by institution, so it is worth checking with your specific bank for branch and transfer cut-off times.