Which Japanese asset-price bubble burst in 1990, helping trigger Japan's early-1990s stock-market crash?

The Japanese asset price bubble burst in 1990, helping trigger Japan's early-1990s stock-market crash.

During the late 1980s, Japanese land and share prices rose dramatically. Easy credit, strong optimism, and financial speculation pushed asset valuations to extraordinary levels. The Bank of Japan then tightened monetary policy, and the boom ended. Stock prices began falling in 1990, while land prices continued weakening for years.

The collapse is associated with Japan's “Lost Decades,” a prolonged period of weak growth, falling prices, banking stress, and balance-sheet repair. The Nikkei 225 had reached an all-time closing high of 38,915.87 on December 29, 1989, just before the downturn deepened.

This bubble should not be confused with the later dot-com bubble, which centered on technology shares in the United States and other markets. It also differs from a single-day crash: Japan's decline was a prolonged unwinding of inflated asset values.