The Nikkei 225 lost about 80% from its 1989 peak during the collapse of Japan’s asset-price bubble.
The index reached an intraday high of 38,957.44 on 29 December 1989. Japanese share and land prices had surged during the 1980s, supported by abundant credit and optimistic expectations. When monetary policy tightened and the bubble burst, asset prices fell for years rather than rebounding quickly.
The Nikkei eventually reached a low of 7,054.98 in March 2009, close to an 82% decline from its 1989 high. Japan’s prolonged stagnation became associated with the phrase “lost decade,” although economic weakness extended beyond a single ten-year period. The Nikkei later recovered, but the 1989 peak remained unreached for decades, making this one of the clearest examples of a long market aftermath.