STATE STREET RESEARCH INTRODUCES SPANISH 401(k) MATERIALS

The new Supplemental Income 401(k) Plan kit contains enrollment materials,an education guide, retirement calculator, and mutual fund fact sheets andprospectuses translated into Spanish. An enrollment video in Spanish is alsoavailable to union members interested in participating in the program. TheSupplemental Income 401(k) Plan, for which State Street Research has managedmoney since January 1999, is the largest multi-union, collectively bargainedTaft-Hartley 401(k) Plan in the country and offers simple, systematicpre-tax savings through payroll deductions. The State Street ResearchAdviser Retirement 401(k) kit is also available in Spanish and contains aneducation guide and getting started guide among its core materials.

"There is a great demand for the translated materials on behalf ofHispanic-American participants and interested prospects investing forretirement," said Kevin Wilkins, Executive Vice President, Head of RetailMarketing and Client Service Group. "Our brokers estimate that 35% ofeligible participants speak Spanish as a first language and our sales forcecontinues to receive a growing number of inquiries. This interestreinforces our research that shows a greater need exists forSpanish-language financial educational information."

Retirement planning information and investment assistance representjust a few of the programs that State Street Research is adding to bridgethe language gap for investors living in the U.S. whose primary language isnot English. In 1998, State Street Research introduced Chinese investmentinformation and quickly followed it up with Spanish materials in 1999. InFebruary 2000, the firm added one of the first truly bilingual financialservices Web sites at www.ssrfunds.com/spanish that allows Spanish users tomove back and forth between English and Spanish with ease. Investors canalso take advantage of State Street Research's dedicated toll-free telephonenumber at 1-888-638-3191 to speak to a representative in Spanish about theirinvestment questions and needs.

State Street Research & Management Company, with a money management historydating back to 1924, is one of the nation's first investment managementorganizations. The Boston-based firm is a subsidiary of MetLife. As ofOctober 31, 2000, State Street Research managed $54 billion in assets, ofwhich $34 billion represented institutional clients and $20 billionrepresented mutual fund and variable annuity portfolios. The firm ismanaging money for 10 of the 12 largest U.S. corporate pension plans, unionprograms, and public employee pension plans; mutual funds for over 530,000shareholder accounts; and individually managed accounts for affluentinvestors. The firm's Web site address is www.ssrfunds.com.