State Street Global Advisors Launches Three New SPDRs(R); New ETFs Follow Performance of Biotechnology, Home Building and Semiconductor Industries.

BOSTON -- State Street Global Advisors (SSgA), the investment management arm of State Street Corporation (NYSE: STT) and the largest institutional fund manager in the world(1), today unveiled three SPDR(R) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the American Stock Exchange(R) (Amex(R)): SPDR Biotech (XBI), SPDR Homebuilders (XHB) and SPDR Semiconductor (XSD). The ETFs track the performance of specific industries and are benchmarked against the Standard & Poor's (S&P) Select Industry(TM) Indexes.

"The biotechnology, home construction and semiconductor industries have in recent years been key growth drivers or leading indicators of the U.S. economy," said Greg Ehret, co-head of SSgA's Advisor Strategies unit. "With professional investors seeking to inject higher return potential into their portfolios, these new SPDRs are uniquely designed so that investors gain the most direct exposure to their respective industries."

The S&P Select Industry Indexes are constructed from a universe of more than 5,000 securities that collectively comprise the S&P Total Market Index. This index measures the performance of common equities listed on the NYSE, the Amex, NASDAQ National Market and NASDAQ Small Cap exchanges. Each S&P Select Industry Index is constructed with an equal-weighted methodology and is rebalanced quarterly. This prevents a few select stocks from dominating the performance of the index.

"Until now, financial advisors seeking exposure to distinct segments of the market had few affordable and liquid options from which to choose," said Jim Ross, co-head of SSgA's Advisor Strategies unit. "The introduction of these ETFs demonstrates our ability to provide investors with a cost-effective and simple method of trading distinct slices of the of the US economy."

State Street Global Advisors currently has more than $94 billion in ETF assets under management worldwide and is the second largest provider in the U.S. and globally(2). In partnership with the Amex, State Street introduced the first ETF, the SPDR, in 1993. SSgA continues to be an innovator of ETF products, and last November launched nine new ETFs, including the SPDR Dividend ETF, Dow Jones Wilshire Style ETFs and KBW Sub-sector ETFs.

"We are once again proud to team up with State Street to launch these innovative products to a market that is increasingly turning toward more precise ETFs to round out their investment portfolios," said Cliff Weber, senior vice president of the Amex ETF Marketplace. "The introduction of these investment vehicles further solidifies our long-standing relationship with State Street."

State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) is the investment management group of State Street Corporation. SSgA delivers investment strategies and integrated solutions to clients worldwide across every asset class, investment approach and style. With US$1.4 trillion in investment programs and portfolios (as of December 31, 2005), State Street Global Advisors has investment centers in Boston, Hong Kong, London, Milan, Montreal, Munich, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Zurich, and offices in 28 cities worldwide. For more information, visit State Street Global Advisors at www.ssga.com.

The American Stock Exchange(R) (Amex(R)) is the only primary exchange that offers trading across a full range of equities, options and exchange traded funds (ETFs), including structured products and HOLDRS(SM). In addition to its role as a national equities market, the Amex is the pioneer of the ETF, responsible for bringing the first domestic product to market in 1993. Leading the industry in ETF listings, the Amex currently lists 154 ETFs. The Amex is also one of the largest options exchanges in the U.S., trading options on broad-based and sector indexes and ETFs, as well as domestic and foreign stocks.

ETFs trade like a stock and are subject to market risk. An investor should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing. To obtain a prospectus, which contains this and other information about the funds, visit (www.advisors.ssga.com/etf). Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

streetTRACKS (R), SPDR Biotech ETF, SPDR Homebuilders ETF and SPDR Semiconductor ETF are distributed by State Street Global Markets, LLC, member NASD, SIPC.

The S&P Indexes are trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. and have been licensed for use by State Street Bank and Trust Company. The Product is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Standard & Poor's and Standard & Poor's makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in the (strategy/fund/product).

(1)Pensions & Investments - May 30, 2005

(2) Source: SSgA Advisor Consulting Services as of December 31, 2005