WASHINGTON, D.C.//December 17, 2003//As most Americans begin to ponder their New Year's resolutions for 2004, the nonprofit Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) today issued "Resolve to Invest in 2004," a 10-step process for people who want to start planning for their financial futures in the new year.  AIE (http://www.investoreducation.org) is an 18-member organization of financial-related trade associations and governmental organizations.

"The start of a new year represents a fresh opportunity for people who haven't started investing to begin doing so," said Alliance for Investor Education President Michael D. Jones, who also serves as senior executive vice president and chief administrative officer for the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD). "That is why the Alliance for Investor Education has pulled together 10 investor education tools from its member's Web sites that make the process of starting out as an investor as easy as possible."

The "Resolve to Invest in 2004" section of the AIE Web sites features the following 10 steps:

1. Define your investment objectives.
   http://www.aimr.org/pdf/investor%20services/defining_investment.pdf

2. Determine the best asset allocation strategy for your needs.
   http://www.siainvestor.org/trips/allocate/intro.htm

3. Balance your portofolio -- or consider rebalancing your existing portfolio.
   http://www.siainvestor.org/categories/managingyourportfolio
   /rebalancing/rebalancing_031.htm

4. Take the time to understand what is going on in the market.
   http://www.aaii.com/promo/20031020/pswkshp.shtml

5. Be realistic about what investing can do for you.
   http://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/takingstock.htm

6. Learn how to select good stocks for your portfolio.
   http://www.better-investing.org/articles/bi/76/427

7. Take into account what rising interest rates could mean.
   http://www.investinginbonds.com/interestRates.htm

8. Determine the tax consequences of your investment decisions.
   http://www.siainvestor.org/topical/topical_taxLaws.htm

9. Become a smarter investor in your 401(k) or IRA.
   http://www.nasd.com/Investor/Smart/401k/index.html or
   http://www.ici.org/funds/abt/faqs_iras.html

10. Avoid getting tripped up by a fraud scheme.
    http://www.nasaa.org/nasaa/sirc/avoid_fraud.asp?nav_id=11

ABOUT AIE

The Alliance for Investor Education Web site at http://www.investoreducation.org provides investors with access to a full range of information they need to make wise investment decisions. Dedicated to facilitating a greater understanding of investment basics, the Alliance for Investor Education was established in 1996 as a coalition of leading financial services industry and investor advocacy groups.

The entire investment community is represented in AIE's membership ranks. Full members of the Alliance include: the American Association of Individual Investors, Association for Investment Management and Research, Bond Market Association, Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Investment Company Institute, Investor Protection Trust, National Association of Investors Corporation, National Association of Securities Dealers, National Futures Association, National Investor Relations Institute, National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, New York Stock Exchange, Securities Industry Association, and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.

The SEC Office of Investor Education and Assistance, the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the North American Securities Administrators Association are among the government and quasi-governmental advisors to the Alliance.

CONTACT: Ailis Aaron Wolf, (703) 276-3265 or .