Stock market open on Sunday for Budget 2026! BSE, NSE release trading schedule for February 1 - check details

In a rare departure from the trading calendar, stocks markets will remain open on Sunday, February 1, after the BSE and NSE announced special full-day sessions to allow investors to react immediately to the presentation of the Union Budget for 2026-27 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.Both the BSE and the NSE have issued separate circulars announcing full-fledged trading sessions on Budget day, even though February 1 falls on a Sunday, ET reported. The exchanges said trading hours will remain unchanged from regular market days.According to the circulars, the pre-open session will begin at 9 am and continue till 9:08 am, while normal trading in the equity market will run from 9:15 am to 3:30 pm.In a circular, BSE clarified that while equity, F&O and commodity derivatives segments will function as usual, certain specialised sessions will remain suspended.

“Trading Members may note that trading in T+0 Settlement Session and Auction Session for settlement default will not be conducted on Sunday, February 01, 2026,” BSE said.The move marks a rare operational exception for Dalal Street. Stock markets typically remain shut on weekends and select public holidays, making February 1 one of the very few working Sundays in recent memory. It is also the first time since 2000 that the Union Budget will be presented on a Sunday.

In recent years, Budget presentations have occasionally deviated from weekday norms. Sitharaman presented the Budget on a Saturday in 2025, while the 2015 Budget under then finance minister Arun Jaitley was also delivered on February 28, a Saturday.

What stays open, what doesn’t

While core market segments will remain live through standard trading hours, BSE has confirmed that the T+0 settlement session and auction session for settlement defaults will not operate on Budget day.

NSE has also announced normal trading for capital markets and derivatives.

Market holiday calendar unchanged

Apart from weekends, Indian stock exchanges observe 16 public holidays in 2026. January 26 will be the next scheduled closure this month.Key holidays in the first half include Holi (March 3), Ram Navami (March 26), Mahavir Jayanti (March 31) and Good Friday (April 3). Markets will also shut on Ambedkar Jayanti (April 14), Maharashtra Day (May 1) and Bakri Id (May 28).In the second half of the year, trading will be suspended on Muharram (June 26), Ganesh Chaturthi (September 14), Gandhi Jayanti (October 2), Dussehra (October 20), Diwali Balipratipada (November 10) and Guru Nanak Jayanti (November 24). Christmas on December 25 will be the final market holiday of 2026.