EWJ — iShares MSCI Japan ETF

EWJ Price Performance — Growth of $10,000

Value of a $10,000 investment in EWJ over time, compared with SPY. Both lines are rebased to $10,000 on the first shared date. Based on total returns — prices are adjusted for dividends and splits, so this assumes distributions were reinvested. Hover or tap the chart for exact values.

EWJ Drawdown

The "underwater" chart: EWJ's decline from its highest prior value at each point in time. It shows how deep past losses ran and how long the fund took to recover to break-even.

Overview

The iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ) operates within the Single Country - Developed category, where ETFValuer tracks a total of 18 funds. Issued by iShares, this fund holds $22.3 billion in assets under management and trades at a price of $89.35. It carries an overall rank of #87 out of 458 tracked ETFs across all categories and has received an ETFValuer grade of B with a score of 71.2 out of 100. The fund charges an expense ratio of 0.49% while offering a dividend yield of 0.78%. The substantial asset size and moderate ranking suggest a well-established vehicle that has attracted significant investor adoption relative to its peers. These metrics collectively define the fund's cost structure and income profile within the broader market landscape.

Over the most recent trading day, the fund declined by 0.53%, followed by a weekly drop of 3.08% and a monthly loss of 4.14%. Despite these short-term declines, the fund posted a positive return of 2.60% over three months and accelerated to a 4.65% gain over six months. Year-to-date performance has been robust at +10.46%, extending to a one-year return of +25.48%. The long-term trajectory shows significant growth, with a three-year return reaching +59.30%. This pattern indicates a divergence where recent short-term weakness contrasts sharply with strong multi-year appreciation. The data reflects a recovery and acceleration trend from the one-month low through the three-year horizon.

The fund is assigned a Moderate volatility label and exhibits a beta of 0.83, suggesting price movements that are generally less sensitive than the broader market. A Sharpe ratio of 1.00 indicates that the fund has generated a favorable risk-adjusted return relative to the volatility experienced. However, the maximum drawdown of -14.68% highlights the potential for significant temporary losses during market downturns. This combination of a beta below 1.0 and a moderate volatility label implies the fund tends to move less aggressively than the market in both directions. The Sharpe ratio of 1.00 suggests that despite the -14.68% peak decline, the fund has historically compensated investors adequately for the risk taken over the measured period.

AI-generated summary based on the data on this page.

EWJ Top Holdings

Holdings as of 2026-05-31 per the fund's most recent SEC N-PORT-P filing. Top 10 holdings make up 28.2% of net assets — a rough gauge of concentration risk (the higher this figure, the more the fund's return depends on a handful of names). To see how EWJ's holdings overlap with other ETFs you own or are considering, check the Stock Overlap tool.

Which Funds Overlap With EWJ

Holding two funds that own the same companies adds cost and complexity without adding much diversification. These tracked ETFs share the most names with EWJ's top 10 — BBJP overlaps most, holding 9 of the same companies as EWJ's top 10 (26.2% of EWJ's assets).

Compares the top 10 reported holdings of each fund, so it's a floor on true overlap — two S&P 500 trackers overlap ~100% even when only 10 names are listed. Use the Stock Overlap tool to search by individual company.

Market Backdrop

10-Year Treasury Yield: 4.61% (as of 2026-07-28) — The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds — the standard "risk-free rate" benchmark used to contextualize this fund’s Sharpe ratio and returns.

CBOE Volatility Index (VIX): 18.21 (as of 2026-07-28) — A real-time gauge of expected S&P 500 volatility over the next 30 days — useful context for this fund’s own volatility label.

Federal Funds Rate: 3.63% (as of 2026-06-01) — The Federal Reserve’s target policy rate, which anchors short-term borrowing costs across the economy.

EWJ Liquidity, Domicile & Tax Treatment

Liquidity: Quoted bid/ask spread is 0.01% and average daily volume is 5.7M/day. Tighter spreads and higher volume mean lower round-trip trading costs; this is a live-market snapshot and can widen during volatile sessions. AUM of $22.3B provides ample scale, supporting tight spreads and issuer commitment to keep the fund open.

Domicile & tax treatment: EWJ is a US-domiciled, SEC-registered ('40 Act) exchange-traded fund. Dividends and capital gains distributions are reported to US investors on Form 1099-DIV, and the fund is not subject to the PFIC reporting or UCITS-specific rules that apply to Irish- or Luxembourg-domiciled funds. Non-US investors should note that US-domiciled ETFs are generally subject to 30% US withholding tax on dividends (unless reduced by treaty) and to US estate tax exposure on the position — Irish-domiciled UCITS ETFs tracking the same index often avoid both, which is why non-US residents frequently prefer the UCITS equivalent where one exists. This is general information, not tax advice — consult a tax professional for your situation.

EWJ Performance History

How EWJ Compares to Other Single Country - Developed ETFs