What did VEU do before 2007?

Before Apr 2007 the series is VGTSX's. Those 10.9 years (May 1996–Mar 2007) show 7.7% a year with 15.2% annualized volatility and a worst drawdown of -46.5% (Dec 1999–Sep 2002). In major S&P 500 declines: 1998 LTCM sell-off, -12.7% versus -15.3% for the S&P 500 (VGTSX); 2000–02 dot-com bear, -42.1% versus -44.7% for the S&P 500 (VGTSX). The full extended history's worst drawdown is -58.4% (Oct 2007–Feb 2009).

How closely does VGTSX track VEU?

Over 234 overlapping months (Apr 2007–Sep 2026), VGTSX had a correlation of 0.998 with VEU, a tracking error of 1.2% a year and a tracking difference of -0.30% a year (grade: close).

How far back can you test VEU? To May 1996, with VGTSX

Computed by the MarketHeist portfolio engine · Published 2026-10-10 · Updated 2026-10-10 · Data through Sep 2026

VEU (All-World ex-US) has its own monthly data from Apr 2007. Spliced with VGTSX it reaches back to May 1996, which adds 10.9 years (36% of the extended history comes from proxies). Data through Sep 2026.

What you'd have missed

VEU's own data starts in Apr 2007; VGTSX extends it to May 1996, 10.9 more years.
Its own history misses the 1998 LTCM sell-off and the 2000–02 dot-com bear.
Its worst drawdown, -58.4% (Oct 2007–Feb 2009), is already inside the ETF's own history; the extension does not change the worst case.
VEA and VXUS are extended with the same VGTSX.

How the history is built

VEU (ETF) Apr 2007 → now

VGTSX (Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund, mutual fund) used May 1996 → Mar 2007; its own data runs May 1996 → now

May 1996Sep 2026

Solid bars are the months each fund contributes to the spliced series; the outline shows how far a proxy's own data runs. Each month uses the youngest fund that has data for it; returns are spliced, not prices (dividends reinvested via adjusted close).

How well each proxy tracked VEU

Proxy	Kind	Months contributed	Overlap with VEU	Correlation	Tracking error	Tracking difference	Beta	Vol ratio	Grade
VGTSXVanguard Total International Stock Index Fund	mutual fund	May 1996–Mar 2007131 months	Apr 2007–Sep 2026234 months	0.998	1.22%	-0.30%	0.99	0.99	Close

Statistics are over the months a proxy and VEU both have data. Tracking error is annualized; tracking difference is the annualized geometric gap (positive: the proxy earned more). Page grade: close, the worst grade among the proxies that contribute months.

VEU's own history versus the extended history

	The ETF's own history	Proxy years only	Full extended history
Window	Apr 2007 – Sep 202619.5 years	May 1996 – Mar 200710.9 years	May 1996 – Sep 202630.4 years
Growth of $10,000	$27,043	$22,520	$60,901
CAGR	5.2%	7.7%	6.1%
Annualized volatility	17.8%	15.2%	16.9%
Sharpe ratio (risk-free 0%)	0.38	0.57	0.44
Max drawdown	-58.4%Oct 2007 → Feb 2009; recovered May 2017	-46.5%Dec 1999 → Sep 2002; recovered Feb 2005	-58.4%Oct 2007 → Feb 2009; recovered May 2017
Worst complete calendar year	2008 (-43.4%)	2001 (-20.1%)	2008 (-43.4%)
Best complete calendar year	2009 (37.6%)	2003 (42.0%)	2003 (42.0%)
Longest underwater (months)	114	61	114
Major declines covered	3	2	5

The columns cover different years, so a higher or lower CAGR is not a verdict on the fund; the point is which market regimes each window includes. Growth of $10,000 is the same one-asset, buy-and-hold calculation the live portfolio app makes.

Growth of $10,000

Log scale, so the early decades are not flattened. Grey is the proxy period; blue is VEU's own data. Dashed lines mark where each fund's returns begin.

Drawdowns

Decline from the prior peak at month-end, the "underwater" curve.

How VEU did in each major US stock-market decline since 1985

Decline	S&P 500	VEU over the same months	Source of those months
1987 crashSep 1987–Nov 1987	-29.8%	not covered	before available data
1998 LTCM sell-offJul 1998–Aug 1998	-15.3%	-12.7%	VGTSX
2000–02 dot-com bearSep 2000–Sep 2002	-44.7%	-42.1%	VGTSX
2007–09 financial crisisNov 2007–Feb 2009	-50.8%	-58.4%	ETF
2020 COVID crashJan 2020–Mar 2020	-19.4%	-23.4%	ETF
2022 inflation bearJan 2022–Sep 2022	-23.9%	-26.2%	ETF

The decline windows are computed, not chosen: every peak-to-trough fall of at least 15% (month-end) in the S&P 500 series since 1985. The fund's figure compounds its monthly returns from the month after the S&P 500's peak through the trough.

VEU's own five deepest drawdowns (extended history)

Peak	Trough	Depth	Recovery	Source of the decline months
Oct 2007	Feb 2009	-58.4%	May 2017	ETF
Dec 1999	Sep 2002	-46.5%	Feb 2005	VGTSX
May 2021	Sep 2022	-27.6%	Mar 2024	ETF
Jan 2018	Mar 2020	-24.3%	Nov 2020	ETF
Jul 1997	Sep 1998	-16.1%	Dec 1998	VGTSX

This covers declines the equity windows miss, such as the bond bear markets of 1994 and 2022.

Caveats

Before Apr 2007 the returns are VGTSX's, after that fund's own costs; the measured gap while both existed is -0.30% a year.
Monthly month-end data: intra-month drawdowns were deeper than shown.
Dividends are reinvested; no taxes or trading costs are modeled.
Our data source's series for VGTSX begins May 1996; the fund itself may be older.

Test it yourself

Open VEU as a one-asset portfolio in the live app, where every number recomputes from fresh data.

Open VEU (100%) in the portfolio builder →

Used in portfolios: Ivy Portfolio

Used in strategies: Dual Momentum (GEM)

Used in guides: Ivy Portfolio

All fund histories →

Frequently asked questions

How far back does VEU data go?: VEU (All-World ex-US) has its own monthly data from Apr 2007. Spliced with VGTSX it reaches back to May 1996, which adds 10.9 years (36% of the extended history comes from proxies). Data through Sep 2026.
What did VEU do before 2007?: Before Apr 2007 the series is VGTSX's. Those 10.9 years (May 1996–Mar 2007) show 7.7% a year with 15.2% annualized volatility and a worst drawdown of -46.5% (Dec 1999–Sep 2002). In major S&P 500 declines: 1998 LTCM sell-off, -12.7% versus -15.3% for the S&P 500 (VGTSX); 2000–02 dot-com bear, -42.1% versus -44.7% for the S&P 500 (VGTSX). The full extended history's worst drawdown is -58.4% (Oct 2007–Feb 2009).
How closely does VGTSX track VEU?: Over 234 overlapping months (Apr 2007–Sep 2026), VGTSX had a correlation of 0.998 with VEU, a tracking error of 1.2% a year and a tracking difference of -0.30% a year (grade: close).

Methodology

Source: Yahoo Finance via MarketHeist, monthly adjusted close (dividends reinvested). Months run to the last complete calendar month.
Splice rule: Each month uses the youngest fund that has data for it; returns are spliced, not prices (dividends reinvested via adjusted close).
Numbers: Computed by the MarketHeist portfolio engine as a one-asset, 100% buy-and-hold portfolio, the same calculation the live app makes. Sharpe uses a risk-free rate of 0%. Drawdowns are month-end.
Correlation: Pearson correlation of monthly returns over the months both funds have.
Tracking error: Standard deviation of the monthly return differences (proxy minus VEU) times the square root of 12.
Tracking difference: Annualized geometric return of the proxy minus that of VEU over the overlap. Positive means the proxy earned more.
Beta and vol ratio: Beta is the covariance of the proxy with VEU divided by the variance of VEU; vol ratio is the proxy's standard deviation divided by VEU's.
Grades: Close: correlation of at least 0.95 and tracking error of at most 3%. Approximate: tracking error of at most 8% and either a cash-like fund (volatility of at most 3%) or correlation of at least 0.80 with a vol ratio of at most 1.25. Category stand-in: anything weaker.
Generated: 2026-10-10; data through Sep 2026. Reproduce hash of the full extended one-asset portfolio: afb7682462567a27

Historical simulation, not investment advice. Past returns, including spliced proxy returns, do not predict future results.