Order Reprints Text size Martin Luther King Jr. speaking at an antiwar demonstration in New York City, 1967. Don Rice/World Journal Tribune/New York World-Telegram & Sun Collection/Library of Congress The third Monday of January is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The federal holiday honors the civil rights leader, who was born on Jan. 15, 1929. Ahead of Wednesday’s inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, U.S. investors will get a holiday-shortened week. It couldn’t come soon enough, amid all the chaos in Washington. Is the stock market open on MLK Day? The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will be closed on Monday, Jan. 18, along with U.S. bond markets and over-the-counter markets.