NEW YORK, May 12, 2004 – Dow Jones Indexes said it will conduct a pilot program in which the opening and closing prices of Nasdaq-listed stocks from the American Stock Exchange will be used to calculate the Dow Jones Averages.

The exact start date of the pilot program will be determined and announced in the near future after certain technical arrangements are made. The length of the pilot program also will be announced at that point, although it is expected to last about six weeks to two months.

The program will include two stocks (Intel and Microsoft) in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and seven stocks (Alexander & Baldwin, C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Expeditors International of Washington, J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Northwest Airlines, USF Corp. and Yellow Roadway) in the Dow Jones Transportation Average.

"This pilot program is a form of client support," said Michael A. Petronella, president of Dow Jones Indexes. "Exchange-specialist firms and managers of funds and portfolios based on the Dow and the Transportation Average have approached us, voicing frustration over their inability to cleanly execute orders designated ‘on the open' and ‘on the close' in the Nasdaq trading system. The specialists on the Amex floor can handle such orders routinely."

He added: "While we aren't committing to switching permanently, we believe we owe our clients the courtesy of exploring the use of this alternative pricing capability in a realistic manner."

Mr. Petronella also noted that Standard & Poor's is conducting a comparable pilot program for similar reasons, and said that Nasdaq, recognizing the traders' problems, has instituted a "closing-cross" process in its all-electronic system.

"It seems to be working well, and we're pleased that Nasdaq is taking proactive steps to improve its service to investors," he said. "However, the closing-cross process is being rolled out over time and doesn't yet include all the stocks in the Dow Jones Averages. The pilot program we are announcing will enable us to compare pricing originating from the Nasdaq system, its new closing-cross process and the Amex floor specialists. For us, the goal is to provide the market with the best measure that we can deliver."

During the pilot program, the Dow Jones Industrial and Transportation Averages will be calculated with Amex prices only at the opening and the close. During the trading day, prices will be taken from these stocks' primary market, which is Nasdaq.