SEATTLE, WA -- (Marketwire) -- 01/18/13 -- The Russell Developed Europe Large Cap Emerging Markets GeoExposure Index, designed to track the performance of companies within its parent index the Russell Developed Europe Large Cap Index with significant revenue exposure to emerging markets, outperformed its parent index by 0.9% year-to-date, 1.7% (annualized) for three years and 5.5% (annualized) for four years ended January 16th (index history inception is July 2008).

"The performance of the Russell Developed Europe Large Cap EM GeoExposure Index relative to the European and emerging markets indices illustrates the positioning of gaining exposure to emerging markets through the stocks of developed market companies. If emerging markets are performing comparatively well, the increased exposure to companies which derive a significant portion of their revenue from emerging markets may lead the GeoExposure index to outperform its parent index, in this case the Russell Developed Europe Large Cap Index. We would expect the opposite when emerging markets are in a down cycle, yet it should be mitigated by all the constituents being within developed markets," said Russell Indexes senior research director Tom Goodwin. "This new index-based investment approach represents an indirect and unique route to gaining exposure to emerging economic growth potential as the markets redraw the global map."

                         Russell Indexes Performance

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                        2013 YTD   One Year     Three Year      Four Year
                          as of      as of    Annualized as   Annualized as
Russell Index            16/1/13    16/1/13     of 16/1/13      of 16/1/13
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Russell Developed
 Europe Large Cap EM
 GeoExposure Index        3.3%       17.8%         9.4%           20.3%
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Russell Developed
 Europe Large Cap
 Index                    2.4%       18.0%         7.6%           14.8%
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Russell Emerging
 Markets Large Cap
 Index                    0.8%       10.1%         7.9%           22.7%
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Source: Russell Investments

About the Russell Geographic Exposure ("GeoExposure") Index Series
The Russell GeoExposure Index Series, four new indexes developed from existing Russell Global Indexes, follow a transparent and rules-based methodology to identify companies with exposure to emerging markets, and then adjusts the weight for each company within the index to reflect the significance of the exposure. The Russell Developed Europe Large Cap EM GeoExposure Index is designed to track the performance of companies within the Russell Developed Europe Large Cap Index with significant revenue exposure to emerging markets.

Nothing contained in this material is intended to constitute legal, tax, securities or investment advice, nor an opinion regarding the appropriateness of any investment, nor a solicitation of any type. The general information contained in this publication should not be acted upon without obtaining specific legal, tax and investment advice from a licensed professional.

Please note: Indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly. Returns represent past performance, are not a guarantee of future performance, and are not indicative of any specific investment. Russell's publication of the Indexes or Index constituents in no way suggests or implies a representation or opinion by Russell as to the attractiveness of investing in a particular security. Inclusion of a security in an Index is not a promotion, sponsorship or endorsement of a security by Russell and Russell makes no representation, warranty or guarantee with respect to the performance of any security included in a Russell Index. Index returns are presented in euro-denominated terms.

Opinions expressed by Mr. Goodwin reflect market performance and observations as of January 16, 2013 and are subject to change at any time based on market or other conditions without notice. Please remember that past performance does not guarantee future performance.

The Russell Global Index includes more than 10,000 securities in 48 countries and covers 98% of the investable global market. All securities in the index are classified according to size, region, country and sector. Daily Returns for the main components are available here: http://www.russell.com/indexes/data/daily_total_returns_global.asp

Russell Investment Group is a Washington, USA Corporation, which operates through subsidiaries worldwide, including Russell Investments, and is a subsidiary of The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company.