What name is given to Japan’s late-1980s property and stock-market bubble that burst in the early 1990s?

Japan’s late-1980s property and stock-market bubble that burst in the early 1990s is called the Japanese asset price bubble.

During the bubble, land and share prices rose dramatically amid easy credit, financial speculation, and optimistic expectations. The Nikkei 225 reached its historic closing peak of 38,915.87 on 29 December 1989.

Asset prices then fell sharply. Banks were left with large volumes of bad loans, and the resulting balance-sheet problems contributed to prolonged economic stagnation during the 1990s and beyond.

The “Lost Decade” describes the long period of weak growth that followed; it is not the name of the bubble itself. The episode also differs from Japan’s postwar economic expansion, which occurred earlier and rested on broader industrial growth rather than extreme asset valuations.