NEW YORK and HARBIN, China, June 19, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:ABAT) today announced that it has been selected to join the broad-market Russell 3000(r) Index. ABAT's common stock will be included in the Index on June 27, when Russell Investment Group will reconstitute its comprehensive set of U.S. and global equity indexes. The Russell 3000 tracks the performance of the 3,000 largest U.S. companies based on total market capitalization. Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc., founded in September 2002, develops, manufactures and distributes rechargeable Polymer Lithium-Ion (PLI) batteries. Advanced Battery Technologies' products include rechargeable PLI batteries for electric automobiles, motorcycles, mine-use lamps, notebook computers, walkie-talkies and other electronic devices
"We believe our inclusion in the Russell 3000(r) Index will further increase our visibility among significant investors and institutions who utilize the Index as part of their overall investment strategies," stated Mr. Zhiguo Fu, CEO and chairman of ABAT. "It is gratifying when others take notice of the success we have been experiencing. Joining the Russell 3000(r) Index marks an important corporate event for Advanced Battery Technologies, as we continue to focus on delivering solid performance to our shareholders.
"We are very pleased to join the select group of companies included in the Russell 3000(r) Index that are widely recognized as main-stream investment alternatives for institutional investors and index fund managers," said Taylor Zhang, ABAT's CFO.
Russell indexes are widely used by investment managers and institutional investors for index funds and as benchmarks for both passive and active investment strategies. Russell determines membership for its equity indexes primarily by objective, market-capitalization rankings and style attributes. Membership in the Russell 3000(r), which is reconstituted annually, means automatic inclusion in the large-cap Russell 1000(r) Index or small-cap Russell 2000(r) as well as the appropriate growth and value style indexes.
Annual reconstitution of Russell's U.S. indexes captures the 4,000 largest U.S. stocks as of the end of May, ranking them by total market capitalization. The largest 1,000 companies in this ranking comprise the Russell 1000(r) and the next 2,000 companies become the Russell 2000(r).
About Russell Investment Group
Russell Investment Group aims to improve financial security for people by providing strategic advice, world-class implementation, state-of-the-art performance benchmarks, and a range of institutional-quality investment products. With more than $200 billion in assets under management, Russell serves individual, institutional and advisor clients in more than 40 countries. Russell provides access to some of the world's best money managers. It helps investors put this access to work in corporate defined benefit and defined contribution plans, and in the life savings of individual investors.
Founded in 1936, Russell is a subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company. Headquartered in Tacoma, Wash., U.S., Russell has principal offices in Amsterdam, Auckland, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, London, Melbourne, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto.
Russell's indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly. For more information on Russell indexes, go to www.russell.com.
About Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc.
Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc., founded in September 2002, develops, manufactures and distributes rechargeable Polymer Lithium-Ion (PLI) batteries. The Company's products include rechargeable PLI batteries for electric automobiles, motorcycles, mine-use lamps, notebook computers, walkie-talkies and other electronic devices. ABAT's batteries combine high-energy chemistry with state-of-the-art polymer technology to overcome many of the shortcomings associated with other types of rechargeable batteries. The Company has a New York office, with its executive offices and manufacturing facilities in China. For more information about Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc. (ABAT), please visit: http://www.abat.com.cn.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, may involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the company's actual results to be materially different from any future results or performance suggested by the forward-looking statements in this release. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks that the results of future performance will not be consistent with the forward-looking statements, risks that the backlog will not be fulfilled due to reasons of either the Company or the customer, and the risks that the batteries of competitors receive better market acceptance than those of the Company's PLI batteries. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements.