Deutsche Börse Updates Composition Of Equity Indices - Condomi, Rational, Schnigge And Takkt Will Be Included In The SDAX - Successor Rule For Veba And Viag In The DAX - Biodata, Carrier 1 And T-Online New In The NEMAX 50 - Quarterly review Of NEMAX 50

According to a decision by the Executive Board of Deutsche Börse, the shares of Bonifatius Hospital & Senioren Residenzen AG, Brüder Mannesmann AG, Porta Systems AG as well as RSE Grundbesitz und Beteiligungs AG will be dropped from the SDAX effective June 19, 2000. RSE has block ownership of 95 percent, which exceeds the maximum permissible limit of 80 percent. The other companies do not meet the criteria set by Deutsche Börse for market capitalization and stock exchange turnover. Condomi AG, Rational AG, Börsenmakler Schnigge AG and Takkt AG will be added to the index. Quante AG will be taken out of the SDAX after June 16, 2000 if the block ownership exceeds 80 percent on May 31, 2000; it would then be replaced by Rinol AG.

A change in the DAX will depend on the European Commission's decision regarding the planned merger of Veba AG and Viag AG. If the Commission approves the merger on June 7, Viag will be taken out of the index after the next index chaining on June 16 and Veba will be listed in the index with the weighting of the future joint venture. Infineon AG would then fill the place left open in the DAX as of June 19.

Deutsche Börse also made three decisions regarding the NEMAX 50. The companies mb Software AG, Micrologica AG and CPU Softwarehouse AG will be taken out of the index after June 16, 2000; they will be followed by Biodata AG, Carrier 1 International S. A. and, as reported on April 11, 2000, T-Online International AG.

In the future, the Nemax 50 will be reviewed and adjusted on a quarterly basis like the SDAX. Deutsche Börse also reported that the free float rule will be made uniform for all selection indices: in the future, free float of 20 percent will be valid as a criterion for a company to be included in or taken out of an index, as the case may be. A transition period until July 1, 2001, will be granted for all of the companies in the selection indices.

A cap limit is being newly introduced for the DAX 100. Companies will be weighted with the same number of shares as the number used to weight them in the DAX or MDAX. This means that exactly the same number of shares are used in the DAX 100 as the number resulting after the cap limit in the DAX or MDAX.