NEW YORK, May 22, 2026, 06:34 (EDT)
- U.S. stock markets will be closed Monday, May 25, for Memorial Day. That includes the NYSE and Nasdaq.
- The bond market’s recommended close is set for 2 p.m. ET on Friday. Markets are closed Monday.
- Wall Street trades close to record highs as markets head into the long weekend. Investors are looking to next week’s inflation data and AI-linked earnings.
Memorial Day brings a three-day pause for U.S. stock traders. Both the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will shut on Monday, May 25, 2026. Stock trading stops for the federal holiday. The Office of Personnel Management lists Memorial Day as Monday, May 25, and both the NYSE and Nasdaq show that day as closed on their holiday schedules.
The issue is on traders’ minds now as the shutdown hits when Wall Street is looking to hang on to May’s rally despite new worries over inflation, oil, and Treasury yields. Regular NYSE trading hours are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, the same for Nasdaq’s main market, so the next scheduled session after the holiday is Tuesday unless exchanges announce otherwise.
Bond traders will see an early close before the weekend. SIFMA, the Wall Street group that sets the fixed-income calendar, suggests a 2 p.m. ET close on Friday, May 22, ahead of the Memorial Day break. The shortened session applies to debt markets like Treasuries and corporates.
Futures for major U.S. stock indexes traded higher early Friday, Reuters said, with Treasury yields dropping and big tech shares ticking up. As of 4:55 a.m. ET, Dow futures were up 0.3%. Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.31%, and Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.5%.
S&P 500 climbed 0.2% to 7,445.72 on Thursday as stocks ticked up. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.6% to 50,285.66. Nasdaq Composite was up 0.1% at 26,293.10. Moves came as Brent crude gave up earlier gains, falling back under $103 after trading above $109.
Holiday or not, pressure remains. Naeem Aslam, chief investment officer at Zaye Capital Markets, told Reuters, “geopolitical risk has become less immediately damaging for sentiment,” but said investors are still following U.S.-Iran talks, the Strait of Hormuz, and oil-supply risk. Reuters
Markets face a busy run of data in a shortened week. Reuters said investors have their eyes on Thursday’s personal consumption expenditures price index, or PCE, which is the Fed’s main inflation measure. Also on tap: a new look at first-quarter GDP and the latest read on consumer confidence. “The macro environment is starting to take more center stage,” said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise. Reuters
Earnings season isn’t quite over. Nvidia projected second-quarter revenue of $91 billion, topping forecasts, as its chips stay at the heart of AI spending. Investors will get numbers from Salesforce and Dell—both tied to AI—next week. Brock Weimer, investment strategy analyst at Edward Jones, said Nvidia’s results show “robust AI-related spending trends remain intact.” Reuters
UBS Global Wealth Management bumped its 2026 year-end S&P 500 target to 7,900 from 7,500 on Friday, pointing to steady consumer spending and data-center demand. The new forecast calls for around 6% upside from the index’s last close. UBS also raised its 2026 earnings-per-share estimate to $335 from $310.
Risks are looking more immediate. Treasury yields have jumped as markets grow nervous that rising oil prices and supply troubles could keep inflation up. Higher yields tend to hurt stocks by making debt more expensive and drawing some money away from equities. “Inflation concerns continue to flare,” Jim Baird, chief investment officer at Plante Moran Financial Advisors, told Reuters. Reuters
Traders get a break from regular U.S. stock trading on Memorial Day 2026. Markets come back Tuesday with the S&P near highs, facing new inflation numbers, yield moves, and another shot at the AI trade.
