Is the Stock Market open on 31st March 2026?

As the financial year FY 2025–26 comes to an end in March, market participants in India are gearing up for the last trading day of the month. On Tuesday, March 31, 2026, India will celebrate Shri Mahavir Jayanti.According to the holiday calendar published by the exchanges, the mainstream stock market will be closed for Mahavir Jayanti, though there is a major exception for the commodity evening session. Here is a detailed look at what will be open, what will be closed on 31st March and how this will impact traders and investors.What is Mahavir Jayanti?Mahavir Jayanti is one of the most important and auspicious festivals for the Jain community. It commemorates the birth anniversary of Lord Mahavira, the 24th and last Tirthankar (spiritual teacher) of Jainism. Born in the early part of the 6th century BC, Lord Mahavira is revered for his profound teachings of ahimsa (non-violence), truth and spiritual liberation.The festival is observed on the 13th day of the bright half of the Hindu lunar month of Chaitra. This year, Mahavir Jayanti falls on Tuesday, 31st March. Due to its cultural and religious importance, it is a public holiday across India, prompting the closure of major banks, financial institutions, and stock exchanges.Status of Equity, F&O, and Commodity MarketsFor market participants, the 31st will be a complete trading holiday. The National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) will not conduct any trading activities on 31st March, which implies that the market participants are not allowed to trade in the Equity (Cash) Market, Equity Derivatives (Futures & Options) and the Securities Lending & Borrowing (SLBM) window on 31st March.However, in the commodity segment, there is a split schedule. The Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX) will remain closed in its morning sessions (9:00 AM to 5:00 PM). But the evening session (5:00 PM to 11:30/11:55 PM) will resume trading as usual, to allow Indian traders to track movements in global commodity markets.Will bank branches be open on Mahavir Jayanti?For retail customers, bank branches in most major cities will be closed on March 31, subject to the Mahavir Jayanti holiday. On 31st March, banks will be closed in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Delhi, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand.However, digital banking will still be operational on 31st March. However, customers can still withdraw cash from ATMs and use Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services for daily transactions. Mobile banking and net banking platforms will work normally, facilitating the transfer of funds, payment of bills and accessing balance.The impact of Mahavir Jayanti on the T+1 settlement cycle31st March will be a clearing and settlement holiday. Due to the closure of the equity markets and clearing corporations, it directly affects the T+1 settlement cycle prevalent in the Indian Stock markets.If investors sell their delivery shares on Monday, March 30, according to the T+1 settlement cycle, the trade cannot be settled on Tuesday, March 31. The settlement will be delayed to the next business day.Furthermore, traders should also consider that Wednesday, April 1, 2026, is the Annual bank closing day, which serves as another settlement holiday for funds.Market participants should then expect their final cash payouts for Monday's equity sales to arrive in their bank accounts on 2nd April.How does it affect investors and traders?The 31st March Mahavir Jayanti trading holiday will have specific implications for market participants, such as:NSE monthly expiry shifts to 30th MarchThe NSE monthly and quarterly expiry for all indices and stock F&O has been preponed to Monday, March 30, because of the Mahavir Jayanti holiday on 31st March. Traders holding Nifty, BankNifty, FinNifty or MidcapNifty positions or stock F&O positions must close or rollover their contract by 3:30 PM on March 30. Any ITM options that are not closed will be either cash-settled or with physical delivery, and OTM options will expire worthless.Equity and F&O Traders take a breakOn Tuesday, the equity, cash, and derivatives segments will be completely closed. Standard orders, which are placed after the market closes on Monday, will remain pending or rejected until the pre-open session resumes on the next working day.Commodity traders should track the evening sessionWhile the morning trading session is paused on MCX, traders still have an evening trading session on the MCX, which will allow trading like regular trading days.Pre-fund for year-end margin callsSince the 31st March marks the financial year-end and there is a bank holiday on that day, the branch-based transactions may not be available on 31st March. Thus, traders can utilise UPI for instant fund top-ups to avoid margin penalties on the overnight F&O positions.Mutual fund investments have a last day to avail a tax deduction For all mutual fund investment and redemption purposes, Monday, March 30, is the last business day of FY2025-26. ELSS, lump sum and SIPs trades intended to avail Section 80C deduction in FY2025-26 must be made before March 30th.Final thoughtsShri Mahavir Jayanti on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, is an official stock market holiday for the Indian equity and currency markets. The NSE and the BSE will have no trading operations on 31st March, pushing the NSE expiry and last business day of FY2025-26 to 30th March. It also pushes the T+1 settlement to 2nd April due to the clearing holiday on both 31st March and 1st April.The key exception is the commodity derivatives segment, which will be open for trading in its evening session on 31st March. Thus, traders should carefully plan their rollovers and margin requirements given that this trading holiday coincides with the last day of FY26.

Is the Stock Market open on 31st March 2026?

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