National Bankshares Declares Semi-Annual Dividend

BLACKSBURG, VA, Nov 12 (MARKET WIRE) --
National Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: NKSH) announced today that its Board
of Directors has approved payment on December 1, 2009 of a semi-annual
cash dividend of $0.43 per share to the Company's stockholders of record
on November 23, 2009. Total dividends for 2009 are $0.84 per share, an
increase of 5% over the stockholder dividends paid in 2008.

James G. Rakes, Chairman, President & CEO of National Bankshares, Inc.
said, "Our Company has traditionally shared higher earnings with our
stockholders in the form of higher dividends. In this challenging economy,
it is especially gratifying to be able to increase dividends again this
year."

National Bankshares, Inc. is a financial holding company that is the
parent of the 118 year-old National Bank of Blacksburg, which does
business as National Bank from 25 offices in Southwest Virginia. The
Company has a second non-bank subsidiary that serves the same markets as
National Bankshares Investment Services and National Bankshares Insurance
Services. The Company's stock is traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market
under the symbol "NKSH." Additional information is available at
www.nationalbankshares.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may be "forward-looking
statements." Forward-looking statements are statements that include
projections, predictions, expectations or beliefs about future events or
results that are not statements of historical fact and that involve
significant risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that
its expectations with regard to forward-looking statements are based upon
reasonable assumptions within the bounds of its existing knowledge of its
business and operations, there can be no assurance that actual Company
results will not differ materially from any future results implied by the
forward-looking statements. Actual results may be materially different
from past or anticipated results because of many factors, some of which
may include changes in economic conditions, the interest rate environment,
legislative and regulatory requirements, new products, competition,
changes in the stock and bond markets and technology. The Company does
not update any forward-looking statements that it may make.

CONTACTS:
JAMES G. RAKES
CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT & CEO
(540) 951-6236
Email Contact

DAVID K. SKEENS
TREASURER & CFO
(540) 951-6347
Email Contact

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