The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has officially announced its holiday calendar for 2026, outlining 15 trading holidays that fall on weekdays. These scheduled closures will suspend trading activities across both NSE and BSE platforms due to national observances and various festivals celebrated throughout the year.

Trading Holiday Overview for 2026

The complete holiday structure for 2026 includes 19 total trading holidays, with four falling on weekends that do not affect regular trading operations. Since equity trading occurs Monday through Friday, weekend holidays do not result in additional market closures.

The NSE calendar remains subject to potential modifications based on changes in public holidays announced by the Central government or Maharashtra state government. Such adjustments could either add additional trading holidays or alter the timing of scheduled non-trading days.

January 2026 Trading Schedule

January 2026 features a single weekday trading holiday scheduled for January 26, marking Republic Day celebrations nationwide. This holiday falls on a Monday, creating an extended weekend break for market participants at the beginning of the year.

Monthly Distribution Pattern

The holiday distribution across 2026 shows varying patterns throughout the year. March emerges as the month with the highest concentration of trading holidays, featuring closures for Holi, Ram Navami, and Mahavir Jayanti. Meanwhile, February, July, and August will maintain regular weekday trading schedules with closures only on weekends.

Regional Considerations

Both NSE and BSE, headquartered in Mumbai, observe Ganesh Chaturthi as an official trading holiday. This reflects Maharashtra's cultural significance of the festival, which is celebrated with considerable prominence throughout the state. The inclusion of regional festivals alongside national holidays demonstrates the exchanges' consideration of local cultural observances in their operational calendar.

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) will implement revised lot sizes for major index derivatives starting from the January 2026 contract series, following an earlier circular announcement. The changes will take effect from the expiry cycle following December 2025, impacting all contracts in the January 2026 series and beyond.

Revised Lot Size Framework

The NSE has announced specific reductions in lot sizes for four major index derivatives to better align with current market conditions.

The lot sizes for other indices, including Nifty Next 50, will remain unchanged under the current framework.

Implementation Timeline

The transition will follow a structured timeline to ensure smooth market operations. Weekly and monthly contracts expiring in December 2025 will continue trading under current lot sizes, with the revised framework applying exclusively to January 2026 series onwards.

Contract Transition Details

The March 2026 contract, originally launched as a quarterly expiry, will be treated as a far-month contract under the new lot size regime starting from the end of the December 2025 monthly cycle. This ensures consistency across all contract types during the transition period.

Quarterly and half-yearly contracts will adopt the revised lot sizes from end of day December 30, 2025, maintaining uniformity with the monthly contract transition schedule.

Market Impact and Rationale

These periodic revisions by the NSE aim to align notional contract values with prevailing index levels, maintaining efficient market functioning and ensuring manageable position sizing for both retail and institutional traders. The adjustments reflect the exchange's commitment to optimizing derivative market structure as underlying indices evolve.

Market participants are advised to review their open positions and risk exposure as the transition approaches. Brokers are expected to update trading platforms and margin calculators to reflect the revised lot sizes in time for the January 2026 series launch.