U.S. financial markets will observe the Christmas holiday with modified trading hours, marking a brief pause in what has been an eventful year for Wall Street.

The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will remain fully closed on Wednesday, Dec. 25, for Christmas Day. The bond market will follow a similar schedule, with the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association announcing a 2 p.m. ET close on Christmas Eve.

The adjusted schedule affects a broad range of market participants, from institutional investors to retail traders. Regular trading will resume on Thursday, Dec. 26, giving market participants time to position themselves before the year's final trading week.

Meanwhile, the $SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY.US)$ which tracks the S&P 500 saw its year-to-date returns climb by 27.35%, while that of the $Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ.US)$, which represents the Nasdaq composite, rose by 29.41%.

While traditional markets pause, $Bitcoin (BTC.CC)$, $Ethereum (ETH.CC)$, $Dogecoin (DOGE.CC)$, and other cryptocurrencies will continue trading non-stop on global exchanges, demonstrating the digital asset market's unique 24/7 accessibility.

Looking ahead, investors should note that while stock markets will maintain regular hours on New Year's Eve, the bond market will close early at 2 p.m. ET on Dec 31. All U.S. markets will be closed on Jan. 1, 2025, for New Year's Day.

The holiday closures come as Asian markets maintain varying schedules. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange will operate abbreviated sessions around Christmas, while the Shanghai Stock Exchange and Tokyo Stock Exchange will continue normal operations during this period.

Major U.S. financial institutions, including Bank of America Corp, JPMorgan Chase & Co, and Citigroup Inc., will close their branches on Christmas Day, aligning with the market holiday schedule.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.