EWZ drawdown: 64.4% below the all-time high
iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (EWZ) is 64.4% below its all-time high, set May 20, 2008 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). The chart shows every day as a percentage of the highest level reached up to that point: 100% means a fresh record, everything below is a drawdown. "All-time" means since our price data begins (2000).
- Below all-time high
- −64.4%
- 35.6% of ATH
- All-time high
- $100.5
- May 20, 2008
- Time below the high
- 18.2 yrs
- since May 20, 2008
- Worst-ever drawdown
- −82.8%
- Jan 21, 2016
- Longest underwater
- 18.2 yrs
- between all-time highs
- Today's level first reached
- Dec 6, 2005
- 20.6 yrs ago
- Last time this deep
- Feb 26, 2003
- in a previous episode
% of all-time high since 2000#
The classic underwater chart (drawdown curve), drawn as % of the all-time high — 100% is a fresh record, everything below it is time spent underwater.
% of all-time high on the price basis — the all-time high considers the full history of EWZ, including years before the visible window. Dividends are excluded on this basis (the convention headlines use).
The deepest drawdowns on record#
Every decline of 15% or more from an all-time high (price basis), deepest first.
| Peak | Trough | Depth | Peak → trough | Recovered by | Underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 20, 2008 | Jan 21, 2016 | −82.8% | 7.7 yrs | not yet | 18.2 yrs+ |
| Sep 7, 2000 | Oct 16, 2002 | −73.7% | 2.1 yrs | Nov 26, 2004 | 4.2 yrs |
| May 9, 2006 | Jun 13, 2006 | −32.1% | 35 days | Jan 23, 2007 | 9 mo |
| Jul 23, 2007 | Aug 16, 2007 | −26.5% | 24 days | Sep 24, 2007 | 2 mo |
| Nov 8, 2007 | Jan 23, 2008 | −19.6% | 2 mo | Feb 26, 2008 | 4 mo |
| Mar 4, 2005 | Apr 15, 2005 | −17.1% | 42 days | Jul 21, 2005 | 5 mo |
| Feb 27, 2008 | Mar 20, 2008 | −15.2% | 22 days | Apr 21, 2008 | 54 days |
Price basis (no dividends) — the convention crash histories use. With dividends reinvested, recoveries arrive years earlier; switch the basis on the chart above to see it.
Drawdown vs what came next#
One dot per month since 2000: how far EWZ stood below its all-time high, and the total return over the following 1, 5 and 10 years.
Read this with survivorship bias in mind: EWZ is on this chart precisely because it survived — the many stocks that fell this far and never recovered (or were delisted) aren't on anyone's chart, so past recoveries here say little about the odds ahead. Monthly windows also overlap heavily (they are not independent samples). Not investment advice.
FAQ
- How far is EWZ from its all-time high?
- EWZ is currently 64.4% below its all-time high, set May 20, 2008 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). Prices only, the convention headlines use; with dividends reinvested the gap is usually smaller.
- What was the biggest EWZ drawdown ever?
- The deepest decline on record in our data (since 2000) took the stock 82.8% below its prior high, bottoming Jan 21, 2016. The table on this page lists every major episode with its peak, trough and recovery date.
Methodology & related#
Daily closing prices since 2000 (split-adjusted). "All-time" means since our price data begins — EWZ may have traded earlier. For a 150-year index drawdown record see the S&P 500 drawdown page. The price basis excludes dividends; the total-return basis reinvests them; the real basis additionally deflates by CPI. See also returns by year, 150 years of returns and the rolling-returns explorer. Past performance does not predict future returns; not investment advice.