STATE STREET RESEARCH EARNS DALBAR KEY HONORS AWARDS FOR THE FIFTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR

DALBAR Service Quality Measurement Awards are presented to firms that haveproven their commitment to financial intermediaries and/or shareholders byconsistently providing quality service. Firms that participate in thisevaluation are tested by DALBAR's rigorous service evaluations of theirtelephone operations and marketing areas. Firms are evaluated on alltransactions relative to the typical relationship a company has with itscustomers. State Street Research was first recognized in 1995, when it wonDALBAR's Quality Tested Service Seal.

"These awards reflect the high-level of service provided by ourknowledgeable and dedicated staff of service center representatives," saidKevin Wilkins, Executive Vice President, Head of Retail Marketing and ClientServices Group. "This was truly a team effort that afforded us theopportunity to be recognized by DALBAR as a firm committed to quality. Itshows that this operation will take the extra steps to not only meet ourclients' expectations, but to exceed them."

DALBAR, Inc., a Boston-based firm with offices in the United Statesand Canada, has a long history of creating an awareness of excellence in thefinancial industry by evaluating, rating and ranking industry efforts. "In a service oriented business environment, many firms boast of acommitment to service quality without evidence to demonstrate thatcommitment," said Louis Harvey, President, DALBAR, Inc. "Firms receivingKey Honors have the credibility behind their claims. State Street Researchcontinues in a tradition of high quality service, having been recognized byDALBAR for 5 consecutive years."

State Street Research & Management Company, with a history dating back to1924, is one of the nation's first investment management organizations. TheBoston-based company actively manages stock, bond and balanced portfoliosfor both institutional and individual investors. As of December 31, 2000,State Street Research managed $53 billion in assets, of which $34 billionrepresented institutional clients and $19 billion represented mutual fundand variable annuity portfolios. The firm manages money for 10 of the 15largest U.S. corporate pension plans, public employee pension plans, unionprograms, individually managed accounts for affluent investors, and mutualfunds for over 530,000 shareholder accounts. The firm's Web site address iswww.ssrfunds.com.

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The DALBAR awards recognize quality shareholder service and should not beconsidered a rating of fund performance. The survey included mutual fundcomplexes that volunteered or were otherwise selected to participate and wasnot industry-wide.