Average Japanese Stock Market return
Over the last 10 years the Japanese Stock Market has returned +9.2% a year (CAGR) with dividends reinvested — +7.1% from price alone, and +5.7% after inflation. Since 1997 the annualized figure is +2.8%. Every standard window, through Oct 2, 2026:
| Window | Since | Total return /yr | Price only /yr | Dividends /yr | After inflation /yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | Oct 2, 2025 | +28.75% | +23.44% | +5.32% | +25.40% |
| 3 years | Oct 3, 2023 | +22.50% | +18.99% | +3.50% | +19.20% |
| 5 years | Oct 4, 2021 | +10.39% | +7.80% | +2.60% | +6.31% |
| 10 years | Oct 3, 2016 | +9.22% | +7.06% | +2.15% | +5.74% |
| 15 years | Oct 3, 2011 | +8.71% | +6.73% | +1.98% | +5.93% |
| 20 years | Oct 2, 2006 | +4.79% | +3.00% | +1.79% | +2.18% |
| 30 years | Oct 2, 1996 | +3.11% | +1.75% | +1.36% | +0.57% |
| 30.5 years (all data) | Apr 2, 1996 | +2.81% | +1.48% | +1.33% | +0.28% |
Annualized (CAGR) from EWJ daily closes at exact anniversary dates; inflation adjustment uses CPI (CPIAUCSL). The dividends column is the reinvested-dividend contribution — total return minus price return.
The years behind the average#
“Average” hides how lumpy the ride is: across 29 full calendar years, the market finished positive 66% of the time, with a best year of +60.9% (1999) and a worst of -30.3% (2001). The arithmetic mean of single years is +5.0% and the median +5.9% — but compounding through the crashes brings the realized annualized return to +2.8%. Almost no individual year lands near the average.
Related#
See each year individually on Japanese Stock Market returns by year, or check this year's YTD so far.
More on Japanese Stock Market
- Returns by year+22.5%
- Monthly returns+1.5%
- Weekly returns+1.0%
- Trailing returns+23.4%
- YTD return+22.5%
- Drawdown from highAt high