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MSCI Barra to Consult on Liquidity and Selected Investability Topics
Geneva - March 12, 2009 - MSCI Barra (NYSE: MXB), a leading provider of investment decision support tools
worldwide, including indices and portfolio risk and performance analytics, announced today that it will begin
consultations with the investment community on liquidity and selected investability topics.
MSCI Barra aims to ensure that its indices provide a strong emphasis on investability and replicability. Recentmarket events have highlighted the fact that liquidity can be dramatically reduced in short periods of time. As aconsequence, MSCI Barra proposes to review the liquidity of existing MSCI Global Investable Market Index
constituents in Developed and Emerging Markets on a quarterly basis instead of semi-annually. In addition, MSCI
Barra proposes to introduce minimum 3-month Annualized Traded Value Ratio (ATVR) and 3-month frequency oftrading levels as additional liquidity requirements.
In connection to the liquidity issue, MSCI Barra proposes to consider for inclusion the depository receipt trading inthe same time zone as the local listing if the local listing fails to meet the minimum liquidity requirements. However,MSCI Barra will continue with its general policy of giving preference to local listings.
Finally, MSCI Barra proposes to apply a fair value mechanism to adjust prices of suspended securities/markets incases of negative market movements as well as to clarify the postponement of Index Review changes for
suspended securities for the MSCI Global Standard Indices.
The consultation document is available on the MSCI Barra web site at www.mscibarra.com.
Please note that this consultation may or may not lead to any changes to the MSCI Equity Indices. MSCI Barra's
final decision will be announced on or before April 17, 2009.

###About MSCI Barra
MSCI Barra is a leading provider of investment decision support tools to investment institutions worldwide. MSCI
Barra products include indices and portfolio risk and performance analytics for use in managing equity, fixedincome and multi-asset class portfolios.
The company’s flagship products are the MSCI International Equity Indices, which are estimated to have over
USD 3 trillion benchmarked to them, and the Barra risk models and portfolio analytics, which cover 56 equity and46 fixed income markets. MSCI Barra is headquartered in New York, with research and commercial offices aroundthe world. Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm, is the controlling shareholder of MSCI Barra.
In 2008 MSCI Barra was named Index Provider of the Year at the European Pensions Awards and Best Provider ofBenchmark Indices in Asia Pacific at the AsianInvestor Service Provider Awards.
For further information on MSCI Barra, please visit our web site at www.mscibarra.com
For media enquiries please contact:
Sally Todd | Clare Milton, Penrose Financial, London
Pen Pendleton | Patrick Clifford, Abernathy MacGregor, New York

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MSCI Barra Global Client Service:
Joe Pivarunas, MSCI Barra, London
Stacy Cuffe, MSCI Barra, New York
Jackson Wang, MSCI Barra, San Francisco
Abbie Bao, MSCI Barra, Hong Kong
Masao Ikeda, MSCI Barra, Tokyo

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This document and all of the information contained in it, including without limitation all text, data, graphs, charts (collectively, the“Information”) is the property of MSCl Inc. (“MSCI”), Barra, Inc. (“Barra”), or their affiliates (including without limitation Financial
Engineering Associates, Inc.) (alone or with one or more of them, “MSCI Barra”), or their direct or indirect suppliers or any third party
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The Information may not be used to verify or correct other data, to create indices, risk models or analytics, or in connection with
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Historical data and analysis should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of any future performance, analysis, forecast
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None of the Information constitutes an offer to sell (or a solicitation of an offer to buy), or a promotion or recommendationof, any security, financial product or other investment vehicle or any trading strategy, and none of the MSCI Barra Parties
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have any liability regarding any of the Information for any direct, indirect, special, punitive, consequential (including lost profits) or any
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that such injury results from the negligence or wilful default of itself, its servants, agents or sub-contractors.
Any use of or access to products, services or information of MSCI or Barra or their subsidiaries requires a license from MSCI orBarra, or their subsidiaries, as applicable. MSCI, Barra, MSCI Barra, EAFE, Aegis, Cosmos, BarraOne, and all other MSCI andBarra product names are the trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of MSCI, Barra or their affiliates, in the UnitedStates and other jurisdictions. The Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) was developed by and is the exclusive property ofMSCI and Standard & Poor’s. “Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)” is a service mark of MSCI and Standard & Poor’s.

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