STOXX Ltd. To Launch First Pan-European Select Dividend Indexes

STOXX Ltd., the leading European index provider, today announced that it will launch the first pan-European select dividend indexes. The indexes, the Dow Jones STOXX Select Dividend Index - covering Europe - and the Dow Jones EURO STOXX Select Dividend Index - covering the Eurozone -track high-dividend-paying stocks. The launch of the new indexes is scheduled for the end of the first quarter of 2005.

These new indexes are based on the concept of the Dow Jones US Select Dividend Index, which was launched in November 2003 to respond to the increased interest of U.S. investors in companies issuing dividends after lower U.S. tax rates on dividends were introduced.

”The index business in Europe is entering a new phase characterized by broader diversification. The Dow Jones STOXX Select Dividend Index and the Dow Jones EURO STOXX Select Dividend Index offer investors the ideal tools to track high-dividend-yielding companies across Europe and the Eurozone,” said Lars Hamich, managing director, STOXX Ltd. “We expect to license these indexes to financial institutions, allowing investors to participate in this concentrated dividend strategy. This dividend index concept has proven very successful in the U.S. and we expect these indexes to be well received in Europe.”

Assets tied to financial instruments based on the Dow Jones US Select Dividend Index exceeded $6 billion as of Jan. 31, 2005.