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 +5.8% after inflation. Since 1997 the annualized figure is +2.9%. Every standard window, through Oct 5, 2026:
| Window | Since | Total return /yr | Price only /yr | Dividends /yr | After inflation /yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | Oct 6, 2025 | +24.48% | +19.32% | +5.16% | +21.23% |
| 3 years | Oct 6, 2023 | +22.21% | +18.71% | +3.50% | +18.92% |
| 5 years | Oct 5, 2021 | +10.34% | +7.75% | +2.59% | +6.26% |
| 10 years | Oct 5, 2016 | +9.25% | +7.09% | +2.15% | +5.77% |
| 15 years | Oct 6, 2011 | +8.65% | +6.67% | +1.98% | +5.87% |
| 20 years | Oct 5, 2006 | +4.74% | +2.96% | +1.78% | +2.14% |
| 30 years | Oct 7, 1996 | +3.17% | +1.81% | +1.36% | +0.63% |
| 30.5 years (all data) | Apr 8, 1996 | +2.89% | +1.56% | +1.33% | +0.36% |
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 +2.9%. 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+23.0%
- Monthly returns+1.9%
- Weekly returns+0.4%
- Trailing returns+21.4%
- YTD return+23.0%
- Drawdown from highAt high