Here's Stock Market Performance During Thanksgiving Week Over Last 50 Years

As Thanksgiving approaches, investors can anticipate lighter trading volumes due to the holiday-shortened week, with markets shuttered on Thursday and a half-day session on Friday, closing at 2 p.m. ET. In anticipation of this distinctive period, here's historical market performance during Thanksgiving week.

Historically, Thanksgiving week has been kind to the bulls. Over the last five decades, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) has seen an average increase of 0.64%, with a positive return in 70% of the instances. In contrast, the average gain for other weeks is a more modest 0.17%, with positive returns 56% of the time. This pattern suggests a favorable market sentiment during the Thanksgiving holiday period.