93% of Stock Mutual Funds Report Negative Returns in 2nd Quarter, According to Weiss Ratings.

Business Editors/Finance Writers

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 25, 2002

Precious Metals and Real Estate-Related Funds Only Sectors to

Register Positive Performance

Widespread market turmoil hammered mutual funds as 93 percent of all stock funds reported negative returns for the second quarter of 2002, according to Weiss Ratings, Inc., the nation's leading independent provider of ratings and analyses of financial services companies, mutual funds, and stocks.

The dismal performance represented a dramatic deterioration from first quarter results, when 45 percent of stock funds reported losses.

"Three years ago investors enthusiastically accepted Wall Street's optimism without question," commented Martin D. Weiss, Ph.D., chairman of Weiss Ratings. "The silver lining in today's disaster is that investors are becoming more critical in their judgment and are starting to realize the need for truly independent investment advice."

Spreading fears of accounting irregularities and disappointing earnings were responsible for steep declines across all fund sectors except precious metals and real estate-related funds. Of the 7,906 stock mutual funds studied, Weiss found that the following sectors had the most widespread losses:

                   % of Funds with Positive   % of Funds with Positive
Fund Sector         Returns in 2nd Qtr 2002    Returns in 1st Qtr 2002
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Energy/Natural Resources      15.94                98.51
Emerging Market                2.75                98.86
Financial Services            15.38                91.86
Income                         4.69                76.14
Foreign                       21.59                73.72

Precious Metals and Real Estate-Related Funds Deliver Gains

In contrast, for a second straight quarter, all precious metals and real estate-related funds delivered positive returns to investors. Precious metals funds provided an average return of 10.99 percent, while funds specializing in real estate-related equities yielded an average return of 4.82 percent. Stock funds recording the largest gains during the quarter were:

                                               Weiss   2nd Qtr  1-Year
                                    Fund     Investment 2002    Annual
Fund Name                          Sector      Rating  Return   Return
----------------------------------------------------------------------
US Global World Precious
 Minerals                      Precious Metals   C+     28.29    97.54
First Eagle SoGen Gold Fund    Precious Metals   C+     19.51   100.05
US Gold Shares                 Precious Metals   C+     19.46    86.57
Van Eck Intl Investors Gold A  Precious Metals   C+     18.28    86.03
Monterey OCM Gold Fund         Precious Metals   C+     15.96    75.22

Weiss Investment Ratings: A = Excellent; B = Good; C = Fair; D = Weak;
E = Very Weak; U = Unrated

"Jumping into last quarter's winners isn't a formula for success either," warns Dr. Weiss. "When the broad market falls, investors often sell the good with the bad, driving all but the safest investments down in value."

Bond Funds Continue to Offer Small But Positive Returns

While 87 percent of bond funds reported positive returns for the quarter, the average return to investors was a meager 2.08 percent. All but three sectors had at least 73 percent of their funds deliver positive returns. The following three bond sectors had the fewest funds delivering positive performance:

                                    % of Funds with Positive
Fund Sector                       Returns during 2nd Qtr 2002
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Emerging Markets                             0.00
Corporate - High Yield                       3.26
Loan Participation                          64.00

Of the 3,745 bond mutual funds tracked by Weiss, those recording the largest returns for the second quarter included:

                                        Weiss      2nd Qtr     1-Year
                              Fund    Investment    2002       Annual
Fund Name                    Sector     Rating     Return      Return
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Standish Internatl Fix Inc
 Fund II                     Global        U        14.87      14.72
MSIF Trust International
 FIP: Inst                   Global        D-       14.39      15.75
Delaware Pooled Tr-Intl
 Fixed Inc                   Global        D        14.38      21.92
American Century Intl
 Bond Inv                    Global        D-       14.36      18.64
FFTW International
 Portfolio                   Global        D-       13.95      14.78

Weiss Investment Ratings: A = Excellent; B = Good; C = Fair; D = Weak;
E = Very Weak; U = Unrated

In addition to rating the risk-adjusted performance of more than 11,000 equity and fixed income mutual funds, Weiss also issues investment ratings on 9,000 stocks and safety ratings on more than 15,000 financial institutions, including banks, thrifts, insurers, HMOs, and brokerage firms.

Weiss Ratings is the only major rating agency covering these industries that receives no compensation from the companies it rates. Consumers can purchase a rating for as little as $7.95 through the www.WeissRatings.com, or starting at $15 by calling 800-289-9222.