Barclays Global Investors Announces Three New iShares Russell Exchange-Traded Funds; iShares Family Now Totals 67 Funds.

Business Editors

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 20, 2001

Barclays Global Investors (BGI) announces that the iShares Russell Midcap Index Fund (ticker:IWR), iShares Russell Midcap Growth Index Fund (ticker:IWP), and iShares Russell Midcap Value Index Fund (ticker:IWS) will begin trading on the American Stock Exchange today.

iShares offers the greatest number of exchange-traded funds tracking Russell indexes. The iShares Russell fund series now totals 12 funds, which also include funds that track the Russell 1000(R), Russell 2000(R) and Russell 3000(R) indexes along with each of their corresponding value and growth indexes. The new iShares exchange-traded funds will be managed by Barclays Global Fund Advisors, a subsidiary of Barclays Global Investors, N.A., and manager of the largest selection of exchange-traded funds, known as iShares. Wagner Stott Bear Specialists, LLC will be the specialist firm for these new products.

"With the addition of the iShares Russell Midcap Index Funds, individuals, financial professionals and institutions can now target a portion of the Russell 1000(R) Index's market capitalization, enhancing their asset allocation and portfolio management opportunities," said Brad Zigler of BGI's Individual Investor Business. "These portfolios, like all iShares funds, give investors more choice and more flexibility," he added.

"Russell's family of U.S. indexes are proving to be effective investment tools as the benchmarks for exchange-traded funds," said Tom Hanly, chief financial officer at Russell. "The new iShares based on our three Midcap indexes definitely give iShares a well-rounded product offering for discerning investors."

iShares are index funds that are bought and sold like common stocks on national securities exchanges as well as certain foreign exchanges. iShares are attractive to many individual and institutional investors and financial intermediaries because of their relatively low cost, tax efficiency and trading flexibility. Investors can purchase and sell shares through any brokerage firm, financial advisor, or online broker, and hold the funds in any type of brokerage account. Because iShares can be traded like stocks, they offer intraday liquidity. The liquidity of iShares is driven by the liquidity of the underlying securities, thus as long as the stocks in the portfolio can be bought and sold easily, any supply and demand requirements can be met.

Similar to many index funds, iShares are designed to have relatively low portfolio turnover, which reduces transaction costs incurred by the fund and minimizes capital gains distributions to investors. For a list of currently available iShares, visit www.ishares.com.

Russell Midcap(TM) Index -- is a capitalization-weighted index

consisting of the 800 smallest companies in the Russell 1000

Index.

The Russell Midcap(TM) Growth Index -- measures the performance of

the mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It

is a subset of the Russell Midcap Index, representing

approximately 50% of the total market capitalization of the

Russell Midcap Index. The Index measures the performance of those

Russell Midcap Index companies with higher price-to-book ratios

and higher forecasted growth.

Russell Midcap(TM) Value Index -- measures the performance of the

mid-capitalization value sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a

subset of the Russell Midcap Index, representing approximately 50%

of the total market capitalization of the Russell Midcap Index.

The Index measures the performance of those Russell Midcap Index

companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted

growth.

Barclays Global Investors is the world's largest institutional investment manager, and the world's largest provider of structured investment strategies such as indexing, tactical asset allocation, and quantitative active strategies(1). BGI managed more than $800 billion in assets as of 12/31/00, and over 1,500 funds, which track over 200 global indexes, for nearly 2,000 clients in 37 countries around the world. As the creator of the first index strategy 30 years ago, BGI is an innovator in investment management, applying science and technology to the investment process. BGI has over 2,000 employees worldwide and is owned by Barclays PLC, one of the UK's largest companies, and one of the world's leading global financial services providers, with operations in over 60 countries worldwide.

Frank Russell Company, a global investment services firm, provides manager-of-manager investment products and services in more than 35 countries. Russell manages $66 billion in assets and advises clients representing more than US$1 trillion worldwide. Founded in 1936, Russell is a subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual and is headquartered in Tacoma, Wash., with additional offices in New York, Toronto, London, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Auckland and Tokyo.

iShares are distributed by SEI Investments Distribution Co. (SEI). Barclays Global Fund Advisors (BGFA) serves as an advisor to iShares. Barclays Global Investor Services (BGIS) assists in the marketing of iShares. BGFA and BGIS are subsidiaries of Barclays Global Investors, N.A., none of which are affiliated with SEI. For complete information, including charges and expenses, request a prospectus by calling 800/iSHARES (800/474-2737). Read it carefully before you invest.

iShares transactions will result in brokerage commissions and will generate tax consequences. Mutual funds and iShares are obliged to distribute portfolio gains to shareholders.

The investment return and principal value of an iShares investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when sold, or Creation Unit(s) when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. In addition to the normal risks associated with equity investing, investments in smaller companies typically exhibit higher volatility. iShares may be sold throughout the day on the exchange through any brokerage account. However, iShares may only be redeemed directly from the fund by Authorized Participants, in very large Creation/Redemption Units.

Russell Indexes have been licensed for use by Barclays Global Fund Advisors for use in connection with iShares. iShares are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Frank Russell Company. Neither Frank Russell Company nor any of its affiliates make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in iShares. Frank Russell Company is not affiliated with SEI, BGI N.A. or any of their affiliates.

Frank Russell Company, a Washington, USA corporation, operates through subsidiaries worldwide.

iShares are not FDIC Insured. Have No Bank Guarantee. May Lose Value.

Note to Editors: iShares is a servicemark of Barclays Global Investors, N.A. All other trademarks, servicemarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

(1) Source: "Special Report: Global Leaders" Pensions & Investments,

(Sept. 2000), p. 15.