The Nikkei 225 fell from nearly 39,000 to below 15,000 during Japan’s 1990s crash and prolonged market slump.
The index reached an all-time intraday high of 38,957.44 on December 29, 1989, at the end of Japan’s asset-price bubble. After the Bank of Japan tightened policy and land and share prices began falling, the Nikkei entered a long decline. It fell below 15,000 in August 1992, less than three years after its record high.
The collapse was connected to the bursting of a broader bubble in Japanese real estate and equities. Banks were left with bad loans, and weak demand and deflation contributed to a long period of slow growth often called Japan’s Lost Decades.
The Nikkei 225 is a price-weighted index of 225 major companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. It is not the same as TOPIX, which uses a different construction and coverage.