Barclays Capital Launches GDP Weighted Benchmark Bond Indices

New Index Family Widens Choice of Benchmark Bond Indices Available to Investors
NEW YORK--(Business Wire)--
Barclays Capital, the investment banking division of Barclays Bank PLC and
publisher of leading fixed income benchmarks, today announced the launch of a
new family of benchmark bond indices that use gross domestic product (GDP) to
weight country blocs within an index. This new benchmark family continues to
expand the number of alternative weight bond indices available in the Barclays
Capital benchmark index platform and widens the choice for investors beyond
existing flagship indices which weight index eligible securities by their market
value. Barclays Capital also announced a new family of universal benchmark
indices that combine developed market and emerging markets debt in single
benchmarks using either market value or GDP weights.

The GDP weighted bond indices are the latest offering from Barclays Capital
using an alternative weighting methodology and complement existing issuer
capped, country capped, composite weight and float adjusted benchmark index
families. Using published GDP data, this new family calculates target index
weights for different index country blocs as a percentage of GDP rather than
weighting each bond by its market value. The GDP weighting methodology is
available for flagship benchmarks such as the Global Aggregate and Global
Treasury Indices and other universal benchmarks that include both developed
market and emerging markets debt. Bespoke benchmark solutions can also be
adapted to use this new rules-based alternative weighting scheme.

"Barclays Capital offers a broad and evolving suite of index products from which
investors are able to select or customize the most appropriate benchmark for
their portfolio needs," said Waqas Samad, Head of Index, Portfolio and Risk
Solutions for Barclays Capital. "By continuing to launch fixed income indices
that are in demand by global investors, like the new GDP weighted index family,
Barclays Capital is in a unique position to offer index and portfolio risk
solutions truly tailored to an index user`s specific market perspective."

"This new index family underscores our commitment to providing clients with
unique analytical resources through our market-leading research platform," said
Larry Kantor, Head of Research for Barclays Capital. "We will continue to invest
in our index offering to deliver to our clients the tools they need to be
successful."

Barclays Capital also announced the expansion of its family of universal
benchmark bond indices that combine broad investment-grade benchmarks with other
emerging markets or high-yield indices. New indices include a Global Treasury
Universal benchmark that adds local currency emerging market debt to the
existing Global Treasury Index, and a Global Treasury Universal Plus Index that
combines local currency and foreign currency government debt from developed and
emerging market issuers into a single benchmark. These indices are available
using market value weights as well as part of the new GDP weighted index family.

About Barclays Capital Index, Portfolio and Risk Solutions

The Barclays Capital Indices platform offers market leading benchmarks and alpha
generating index products to meet the diverse needs of global investors
including investment and market analysis of both alpha and beta sources,
portfolio benchmarking and performance measurement, asset allocation, and the
creation of index tracking funds and index based structured products. Barclays
Capital bond market indices are the most widely accepted benchmarks in the asset
management industry, used by over 90 percent of US institutional investors, a
majority of large European investors and a growing share of Asia-Pacific
managers.

About Barclays Capital

Barclays Capital is the investment banking division of Barclays Bank PLC. With a
distinctive business model, Barclays Capital provides large corporate,
government and institutional clients with a comprehensive set of solutions to
their strategic advisory, financing and risk management needs. Barclays Capital
has offices around the world, employs over 20,000 people and has the global
reach, advisory services and distribution power to meet the needs of issuers and
investors worldwide. For further information about Barclays Capital, please
visit our website www.barclayscapital.com.

Barclays Capital - the investment banking division of Barclays Bank PLC.
Registered in England 1026167. Registered office 1 Churchill Place, London, E14
5HP. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority and a member
of the London Stock Exchange.

Barclays Capital
Sarah Naegele, 212-412-1391
sarah.naegele@barclayscapital.com
Seth Martin, 212-412-7565
seth.martin@barclayscapital.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009