Anthony W. Ruggiero Elected to Olin Corporation's Board of Directors.

NORWALK, CT--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 29, 1999--

Anthony W. Ruggiero, Olin Corporation's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, was elected to Olin's Board of Directors at the company's Annual Meeting of Shareholders on April 29, 1999. Mr. Ruggiero's election closely followed his promotion in January of 1999 to the Executive Vice President's post in addition to his duties as Chief Financial Officer.

Since joining Olin in 1995 as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Ruggiero has played a key role in formulating and executing plans designed to enhance the company's long-term shareholder value. These actions included the recent spin-off of Olin's specialty chemical operations as Arch Chemicals in February 1999; the spin-off of Primex Technologies from Olin in 1996; the acquisition of DuPont's share of Niachlor and Olin's joint venture with Geon, both actions that bolstered Olin's market-leading positions in the chlor-alkali industry; and the sale of Olin's TDI business.

Prior to joining Olin, Mr. Ruggiero was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Reader's Digest Association in Pleasantville, NY. While at Reader's Digest, Mr. Ruggiero was actively involved in transforming the company from a privately held firm into a public corporation, and he participated in two public offerings of the company's common stock.

Mr. Ruggiero spent 20 years with Squibb Corporation, a multi-billion dollar global pharmaceutical company, prior to joining Reader's Digest. He joined Squibb in 1969, shortly after its spin-off as a public company from Olin Corporation. While at Squibb, he held several positions of increasing responsibility with both the operating units and at the corporate level. In 1983, he was named Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and a member of Squibb's Board of Directors.

Mr. Ruggiero holds an MBA in finance from Columbia University, a BS degree in economics from Fordham University, and a post master's certificate in accounting from Iona College. He is a member of the CFO advisory council of the Financial Executives Institute. His office is located at Olin's headquarters in Norwalk, CT.