November 1, 2009 (FinancialWire) — Versus the closing levels for the week ending October 23, 2009, the iShares Russell Microcap ETF (NYSE: IWC), the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE: IWM) and the SPDR Trust ETF (NYSE: SPY) all lost ground last week, closing-out the week on Friday with overall declines in the 4% to 7% range.  Versus their 50-day rolling averages, as of last week’s close, only the SPDR Trust remained in positive territory. In terms of trading volume, activity for all three ETFs was unusually high, with average daily volumes for the week at 40% to over 100% above their respective 50-day rolling average daily volumes.

On the week, The Russell Microcap fared the worst of the three ETFs, losing a total of 6.98% through the week on average daily volume of 298,140 for the week (versus its 50-day average volume of 143,072. The Russell 2000 ETF lost a total of 6.21% through the week on average daily volume of 73,615,700 for the week (versus its 50-day average volume of 48,895,442. The SPDR Trust ETF lost a total of 4.18% through the week on average daily volume of 253,552,700 for the week (versus its 50-day average volume of 181,091,316.

Comparing performance of the SPDR Trust ETF to the iShares Russell 2000 ETF and the iShares Russell Microcap ETF provides a fair representation of how small- and micro-cap stocks are faring in relation to their greater capitalized counterparts.

About The ETFs:

The iShares Russell 2000 ETF invests in approximately 2000 of the smallest capitalization-weighted companies in the Russell 3000 index, yielding investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 2000 Index, investing in at least 90% of assets in the securities of the underlying index. It uses a representative sampling strategy to track the Russell 2000 Index, which measures the performance of the small-capitalization sector of the US equity broad market.

The iShares Russell Microcap ETF investment results correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell Microcap index, investing at least 90% of assets in the securities of that underlying index. The ETF uses a representative sampling strategy to track the Russell Microcap Index. The index, itself, is capitalization-weighted and includes companies ranging in total market capitalization from approximately $50 million to $550 million, which represents approximately 3% of the market capitalization of listed U.S. equity securities.

The SPDR Trust is an exchange-traded fund that holds all of the S&P 500 Index stocks, and corresponds generally to the price and yield performance of the S&P 500 Index. It is comprised of undivided ownership interests called SPDRs. The fund issues and redeems SPDRs in multiples of 50,000 SPDRs in exchange for S&P 500 Index stocks and cash.

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Free annual reports for ETF component companies are available through the Free Annual Reports Service (http://investrend.ar.wilink.com/?level=279).

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