American Stock Exchange to Trade Options on Nine Securities NEW YORK, March 24 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Stock Exchange(R) (Amex(R)) will launch trading in options on Monday, March 28, 2005 on the following Nasdaq Stock Market and New York Stock Exchange listed stocks of: * Aleris International, Inc. (Symbol: ARS) * Companhia Siderurgica Nacional S.A. (Symbol: SID) * eSPEED, Inc. (Stock Symbol: ESPD/Option Symbol: ENU) * Internet Capital Group, Inc. (Stock Symbol: ICGE/Option Symbol: GYQ) * Sensient Technologies Corporation (Symbol: SXT) * Syneron Medical Ltd. (Stock Symbol: ELOS/Option Symbol: QOE) * Todco (Symbol: THE) * VCA Antech, Inc. (Stock Symbol: WOOF/Option Symbol: QWF) * Walter Industries, Inc. (Symbol: WLT) Aleris International, Inc. will open with position limits of 2,500,000 shares. The options will trade on the February expiration cycle. The specialist will be TANSTAAFL Research & Trading, LLC. Aleris recycles aluminum and zinc, as well as manufactures common-alloy sheets from recycled aluminum. Companhia Siderurgica Nacional S.A. will open with position limits of 7,500,000 shares. The options will trade on the March expiration cycle. The specialist will be TANSTAAFL Research & Trading, LLC. Companhia Siderurgica Nacional S.A. manufactures iron and steel in Brazil. eSPEED, Inc., will open with position limits of 7,500,000 shares. The options will trade on the February expiration cycle. The specialist will be Charlton Specialist Partners, LLC. eSPEED develops and deploys electronic marketplaces and related trading technology that offers traders access to financial markets. Internet Capital Group, Inc. will open with position limits of 25,000,000 shares. The options will trade on the January expiration cycle. The specialist will be Wolverine Trading, L.P. Internet Capital Group, Inc. is an Internet holding company primarily involved in managing and operating a network of business-to-business e-commerce companies. Sensient Technologies Corporation will open with position limits of 5,000,000 shares. The options will trade on the January expiration cycle. The specialist will be Group One Trading, L.P. Sensient Technologies Corporation supplies colors, flavors and fragrances. Syneron Medical Ltd. will open with position limits of 7,500,000 shares. The options will trade on the March expiration cycle. The specialist will be Susquehanna Investment Group. Syneron Medical Ltd. designs, develops and markets aesthetic medical products based on proprietary Electro-Optical Synergy, or ELOS technologies. Todco will open with position limits of 5,000,000 shares. The options will trade on the March expiration cycle. The specialist will be Group One Trading, L.P. Todco provides contract drilling services in the United States Gulf Coast area. VCA Antech, Inc. will open with position limits of 5,000,000 shares. The options will trade on the March expiration cycle. The specialist will be AGS Specialists, LLC. VCA Antech, Inc. owns, operates and manages a network of free standing veterinary hospitals and veterinary-inclusive clinical laboratories in the US. Walter Industries, Inc. will open with position limits of 7,500,000 shares. The options will trade on the March expiration cycle. The specialist will be Susquehanna Investment Group. Walter Industries, Inc. is a diversified company with major interests in homebuilding/financing and industrial operations. The American Stock Exchange(R) (Amex(R)) is the only primary exchange that offers trading across a full range of equities, options and exchange traded funds (ETFs), including structured products and HOLDRS(sm). In addition to its role as a national equities market, the Amex is the pioneer of the ETF, responsible for bringing the first domestic product to market in 1993. Leading the industry in ETF listings, the Amex lists 155 ETFs. The Amex is also one of the largest options exchanges in the U.S., trading options on broad-based and sector indexes as well as domestic and foreign stocks. For more information, please visit http://www.amex.com/ . DATASOURCE: American Stock Exchange CONTACT: Mary Chung, American Stock Exchange, +1-212-306-1641, Web site: http://www.amex.com/

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