What if you invested monthly in a Brazil ETF (EWZ) for 20 years?
See what a 20-year monthly plan into EWZ—large-cap stocks of the commodity-exporting nation Brazil—would have looked like using real price data, including extreme volatility and currency risk.
Investment conditions
Asset · Brazil ETF (EWZ)
Method · Recurring monthly investment
Period · 2006-07-01 ~ 2026-07-01
Amount · $222 / month
As of · 2026-07-01
Key metrics
These results do not reflect taxes. Based on historical data.
Risk & recovery
As important as returns. This service does not hide maximum drawdown or loss periods.
Maximum drawdown (MDD)
-67.3%
Largest drop from peak
Longest loss period
35months
Months in loss: 100
Recovery period
8months
Growth over time
Invested principal (dashed) and portfolio value (solid). Values below match the calculation.
Total invested $53,556 → Final value $74,972 (+40.0%), Maximum drawdown (MDD) -67.3%
Why this period and asset
EWZ is a dollar-denominated ETF tracking the MSCI Brazil Index, heavily weighted toward commodities (oil, iron ore) and financials. As a leading commodity exporter, Brazil swings violently with the commodity cycle. It rose sharply on the mid-2000s commodity supercycle and emerging-market boom, then endured a long slump after 2011 as commodity prices fell and political scandals, impeachment, fiscal crisis, and a plunging real piled up. The 2020 pandemic shock was severe too. Brazilian investing is defined by very large real-currency risk on top of price swings.
Interpreting the result
This scenario shows the outcome of extreme volatility combining a commodity nation with currency risk. On the results screen, be sure to check the maximum drawdown, the underwater period, and the recovery time. It can rise enormously in upswings, but in downswings the drawdown is deep and it can take a long time to recover to your principal. Monthly investing buys more units in a plunge but does not remove political, commodity, and currency risk.
Caveats & limits
Brazil ETFs are highly sensitive to commodity prices, political instability, and sharp real-currency swings, making them very volatile. As a dollar-denominated ETF, a weaker real trims dollar returns, and won conversion adds another layer. The ETF's expense ratio, trading costs, and taxes also affect performance. Past behavior does not guarantee future results, and this page does not recommend buying any specific asset.
Data sources & limits
- Price data source: Yahoo Finance / FinanceDataReader
- Collected on: 2026-07-23
- Effective trading date: 2026-07-01
- Price basis: Adjusted close (reflects dividends and stock splits)
- Trading fees and taxes are not reflected — figures are pre-tax.
- Based on historical data; does not guarantee future returns.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Brazil so volatile?
A high share of commodity exports ties it to the commodity price cycle, compounded by political instability and sharp real-currency swings. Both upswings and downswings are large, which you can see in the maximum drawdown on the results screen.
What does 'large currency risk' mean here?
EWZ is dollar-denominated, so a weaker real trims dollar-based results even if the index rises, and won-based investors add the KRW/USD rate on top. Multiple currency layers make performance swings larger.
It fell a lot—will monthly investing recover it?
This page makes no predictions or recommendations. Dollar-cost averaging buys more units in a plunge, but markets with heavy political, commodity, and currency risk can take a long time to recover. Check the underwater and recovery periods on the results screen.
Related scenarios
📋 Results are based on historical data; past returns do not guarantee future returns.
📋 This service is provided for educational purposes to help you understand investing, not as investment advice.