The Nikkei 225 reached its record closing level of 38,915.87 on December 29, 1989, before Japan’s 1990s market crash.
The peak came during Japan’s asset-price bubble, when land and stock prices rose dramatically amid rapid credit growth and optimistic expectations. The Bank of Japan began raising interest rates in 1989, and asset prices subsequently fell. The Nikkei entered a prolonged decline, while Japan experienced a period often called the Lost Decade.
The index’s record was not surpassed until 2024, more than three decades after the 1989 peak. That unusually long gap made the 1989 level a major reference point in discussions of financial bubbles and recoveries.
The figure is a closing level, not the highest intraday quotation. That distinction matters because indexes can trade above a record close during a session and still finish below it.