Looking for the stock market outlook for the first half of 2026? See what you should consider heading into the new year to help be prepared.

US stock markets will close early at 1 p.m. ET on December 24 and remain closed on Christmas Day. The bond market will also close at 2 p.m. ET on December 24.

Wall Street analysts expect another strong year in stocks in 2026, propelled by continued AI sector gains and additional Fed interest-rate cuts.

That would mark the third year in a row that the stock market has risen by double digits, following gains of 24.2% in 2023 and 23.3% in 2024. The S&P 500 is now up 77.5% since the end of 2022. Racking up three straight years of double-digit gains isn't as common as you might think.

It should go without saying that the S&P 500 has been riding high over the last few years and has delivered one of the most impressive runs in market history. Over the past three years, the index has surged a whopping 80%,

Overview: The 7% rule limits losses by setting a clear exit point when a stock falls after purchase.Small losses are easier to recover from than large drops tha

The market has performed exceptionally well in the past decade, well ahead of its historical track record. Since mid-December 2015, the widely followed benchmark of 500 large and profitable U.S. businesses has produced a total return of 290% (as of Dec. 17), amounting to a compound annual rate of 14.6%.

Bank of America says on its website that financial centers will be closing at 2 p.m. local time on December 24 and closed entirely on Christmas Day. Chase branches will be closed