News Releases

Barclays launches Global Commodities Delta Fund (SGD) in Singapore

Singapore – Barclays, one of the world’s major financial institutions and a leading provider of retail structured products in Europe, Singapore and Hong Kong, has launched a retail fund in Singapore directly tracking the performance of the Rogers International Commodity Index™ - Total Return ("RICI™ - Total Return").

The Global Commodities Delta Fund (SGD) is an open-ended structured fund that aims to provide a transparent commodity investment opportunity enabling investors to capture potential return by riding on the performance of the RICI™ - Total Return.

The Fund achieves commodities investment exposure by linking with the RICI™- Total Return, which is composed of more than 30 commodities in three main categories: energy, metals and agriculture. The diversified index constituents will be reviewed every year by a committee chaired by Jim Rogers.

Since its inception in August 1998 the RICI™ - Total Return has significantly outperformed other major commodity indices including the Dow Jones-AIG Index and the Goldman Sachs Commodity Index, as well as other major Asia and world equity indices such as the MSCI AC Asia Index (Morgan Stanley Capital International All Country Asia ex Japan Index) and MSCI World Index.

Commenting on the launch of the Fund, Yong Sheng Tan, Director of Investor Solutions at Barclays Capital in Singapore said, "The Global Commodities Delta Fund provides investors with exposure to the commodities market using a strategy which has historically proven profitable, and enables us to share the performance and investment insights of Jim Rogers. Despite equity and credit market volatility and global recession fears brought on by the sub-prime crisis, commodity markets have continued to perform strongly and have had a very strong start to 2008."

The Fund will be distributed in Singapore through ABN Amro and Citibank.

Separately, Barclays launched a USD-denominated fund using an identical investment strategy in Hong Kong on 14 December 2007, and as at 28 March 2008 the Net Asset Value of this fund had increased by 13.92% .

Barclays Capital is a recognised global leader in structured products and derivatives, having been named in the Risk magazine awards Structured Products House of the Year 2007, Inflation Derivatives House of the Year in 2006 & 2007, and Currency and Commodities Derivatives House of the Year in 2006.

Regionally, Barclays Capital was named FX and Commodities House of the Year 2007 in FinanceAsia’s Structured Products Awards, Structured Products House of the Year, Asia 2007 by Structured Products magazine, Currency Derivatives House of the Year 2006 by AsiaRisk magazine, and in The Asset Asian Awards won Best Currency Derivatives House & Best Commodity-Linked Structured Product in 2006.

-ENDS-

For further information please contact:

Jonathan Williams, Barclays Capital Communications Tel: +65 6308 3490

Notes to editors:

About Barclays Bank PLC

Barclays is a major global financial services provider engaged in retail and commercial banking, credit cards, investment banking, wealth management and investment management services, with an extensive international presence in Europe, the USA, Africa and Asia. With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs 135,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for over 27 million customers and clients worldwide.

For further information about Barclays, please visit our website www.barclays.com.

About Barclays Capital

Barclays Capital is the investment banking division of Barclays Bank PLC which has an AA long-term credit rating and a balance sheet of over £1.2 trillion. With a distinctive business model, Barclays Capital provides large corporate, government and institutional clients with solutions to their financing and risk management needs. Barclays Capital has offices in 29 countries, employs over 16,200 people and has the global reach and distribution power to meet the needs of issuers and investors worldwide.

For further information about Barclays Capital, please visit our website www.barclayscapital.com.

Barclays Capital - the investment banking division of Barclays Bank PLC. Registered in England 1026167. Registered office 1 Churchill Place, London, E14 5HP. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority and a member of the London Stock Exchange.