MSCI Fixed Income Credit Indices: Constituents To Be Reclassified Based On Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)

London, May 3, 2000. Morgan Stanley Capital International Inc. (MSCI) today announced the reclassification of all constituent bonds within the MSCI Fixed Income Credit Indices to reflect the changing structure of the global economy. MSCI Fixed Income Credit indices are a joint venture with Morgan Stanley Dean Witter's Fixed Income Division.

The new classification for corporate issuers is based upon the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) launched by MSCI in conjunction with Standard & Poor's late last year. Additional asset class and sector classifications for other issuers including governments, Jumbo Pfandbriefe and asset-backed securities have been added.

Clients will immediately be able to view the constituent bonds according to their new classification via the MSCI Fixed Income Indices Website, ClientLink, by using the partitioning tool available. The initial change to the published MSCI Fixed Income Credit Indices is the move of Real Estate from its previous classification as an Industrial (Non-Financial) to a newly created asset class, Financial Corporate, effective May 1, 2000. Other changes to the published indices to reflect the new classification hierarchy will be released as part of the enhanced website, which is due to be launched later this year.

GICS has already been enthusiastically received by equity investors and is fast becoming the industry standard. Extending this classification system across asset classes will:

• Enable a consistent approach to analyzing corporates from both bond and equity perspectives

• Help to identify event risk associated with particular sectors
• Provide a flexible, easy-to-use tool for performance measurement across sectors, industries and asset classes

• Ensure issuers' credit risk level and primary activity are accurately reflected by assigning them to up-to-date sectors, industry groups, industry and sub-industries which will be reviewed on a regular basis.

For further information on MSCI Fixed Income Credit Indices, please contact:

Susan Ladd, MSCI, London +44 (0) 20 7425 3059

A N Other (FID)Neil McLeish, European Corporate Bond Strategist, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter + 44 (0) 20 7425 7481

Emma Leeds/Catherine May, Luther Pendragon + 44 (0) 20 7353 1500

For information on other MSCI indices or data, please visit our website at www.msci.com or contact MSCI Client Services on:

London +44 (0) 20 7425 6660
New York +1 212 762 5790
Hong Kong +852 2848 6740

Morgan Stanley Capital International Inc. (MSCI) is a leading provider of global indices and benchmark related products and services to investors worldwide. Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co., a global financial services firm and a market leader in securities, asset management, and credit services, is the majority shareholder of MSCI and The Capital Group Companies, Inc., a global investment management group, is a minority shareholder.