For immediate release
8 June 2006
CITIGROUP AND STANDARD & POOR’S TO LAUNCH
RESEARCH-BASED GLOBAL EQUITY CUSTOM INDEX
Market-leaders co-operate on
Citigroup S&P Global STARS Custom Index
London – Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking and Standard & Poor’s
(‘S&P’) today announced they have collaborated to design the Citigroup S&P Global
STARS Custom Index (‘the Index’), a research-based equity index which will provide
exposure to stocks with high growth potential following S&P’s analysts’ latest
recommendations.
The Index is a forward-looking total-return global index. It is based on S&P’s
independent equity research and its stock recommendation system, known as Stock
Appreciation Ranking System (“STARS”). The Index consists of 25 stocks from
across Europe, the US and Asia, selected according to a methodology established
by Citigroup and S&P to pick stocks with the highest performance potential on a
relative and an absolute basis. The Index is calculated and maintained by S&P and
published daily in US Dollar and Euro on Bloomberg, Reuters and S&P’s website.
On a historical basis, the Index had an average annualised return of 13.5% p.a.
between June 1996 and April 2006, outperforming the S&P Global 1200 index, a
widely-recognised global benchmark, by 4.28% p.a. on average.
Barbara Mullaney, head of European Structuring, Equity Derivatives, Citigroup, said:
“Citigroup recognises that managing a stock portfolio can be difficult, particularly
when it comes to the constant need to reassess investments as company prospects
change, and the challenge of picking new stocks when rebalancing. The Citigroup
S&P Global STARS Custom Index provides a research-driven and efficient basis for
products which will incorporate these investment processes by drawing on S&P’s
stock rating system and its up-to-date research.“
Steve Goldin, Vice President at S&P said: “The development of this strategy index is
part of an ongoing programme to expand our range of equity strategies. The
Citigroup S&P Global STARS Custom Index offers global exposure to highly liquid
stocks selected using a rules based methodology and supported by S&P award
winning independent equity research which we believe will see keen interest from
retail and institutional investors.”
Reporters will have the opportunity to discuss in depth the details of the Index at a
media event, to be held as part of Citigroup and S&P’s client-education roadshow
programme. Further details will be announced shortly.
-endsMedia contacts:
Citigroup: Jeremy Hughes -- +44 207 986 5607 jeremy.hughes@citigroup.com
Standard & Poor’s: Lisa Hall - +44 20 7176 3536 : lisa_hall@sandp.com
Notes to editors:
1. The Index can be found on Bloomberg [Bloomberg code] and Reuters [RTR
code] and at www.s&p.com
2. For further details of the structure of the Index and S&P’s STARS
recommendation system, call Lisa Hall 020 7176 3536
About Standard & Poor’s
Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE:MHP), is the world's foremost
provider of independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research and data. With
approximately 6,300 employees located in 21 countries and markets, Standard & Poor's is an essential
part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for more than 140 years in
providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their
investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com.
Citigroup
(English)
Citigroup (NYSE: C), the leading global financial services company has some 200 million customer
accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations,
governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer
banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management.
Major brand names under Citigroup's trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica,
Smith Barney and Banamex.
Our Corporate and Investment Banking group achieves the extraordinary for our clients around the
world. No financial institution is more committed to understanding and advancing the goals of its clients
- our diverse and talented staff in some 100 countries advises companies, governments, and
institutional investors on the best way to realize their strategic objectives. We create solutions for and
provide the broadest possible capital and market access to thousands of issuer and investor clients,
and no institution better executes the increasingly complex payment and cash management solutions
required in today's global economy. Additional information can be found at: www.citigroupgcib.com