Union Budget 2026: Earlier this month, the BSE and NSE announced that equity markets will remain open on Sunday, February 1, for trading alongside the Union Budget presentation.
In a circular dated January
16, the NSE said, “On account of the presentation of the Union Budget, members are requested to note that the Exchange shall conduct a live trading session on February 01, 2026, as per standard market timings (9:15 am–3:30 pm).”
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget 2026 in the Lok Sabha at 11 am. The speech will mark her ninth straight Budget, placing her among the finance ministers with the longest uninterrupted tenures.
In recent years, February 1 has become the fixed date for the annual Budget, with the 2025 Budget also tabled on the same day.
Ahead of the announcement, the Finance Ministry released the Economic Survey on January 29, followed by a media briefing by Chief Economic Advisor V. Anantha Nageswaran and senior officials. The Department of Economic Affairs oversees the preparation of Budget documents, detailing the government’s projected revenues, expenditure plans, and new schemes for the coming fiscal year.
Markets have previously operated on weekends for Budget days, including February 1 in 2025 and 2020, and February 28, 2015.
As the Budget is expected to set the tone for fiscal policy and markets, trading on February 1 will proceed during regular hours, giving investors real-time reaction to the government’s roadmap for the year ahead.
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