AMERI AND MZ CONSULT JOIN FORCES FOR LATIN AMERICA’S GREATEST INTERNET INVESTOR RELATIONS AWARDS

Mexico City – October 22, 2002 - AMERI (www.ameri.org), the Mexican Association of Investor Relations, and MZ Consult (www.mzconsult.com.br/es), one of Latin America’s leading provider of investor relations services and debt issuer, announced today an agreement to perform, promote and market TOP 5, POP+ and RAO 1 – the most important awards for Investor Relations (IR) on the web – among Mexican companies and Latin America. MZ will concentrate on the technical analysis of the IR websites and online annual reports of leading Mexican companies (including foreign companies with relevant operations in Mexico), as well as on preparing the infrastructure of the POP+ pooling. MZ Consult is already receiving and validating the votes for the POP+ Award and KPMG Auditores Independentes (Brazil) is responsible for examining the procedures used to ensure the reliability of the results. AMERI will review the analysis performed by MZ Consult and will validate the final results regarding the TOP 5 and the RAO 1 Awards. AMERI will also coordinate the promotion of the event among its members and the Mexican investment community, and will be responsible for announcing the Mexican winners, in a ceremony to be held on January 16, 2003. As a first result of this agreement, AMERI and MZ Consult decided to extend the registration deadline for Mexican companies (or with relevant operations in Mexico). Companies interested in participating can register, without fees, at the website www.ameri.org or www.mzconsult.com.br/es until November 29, 2002. The rules and criteria of analysis are available at the www.mzconsult.com.br/es. The award categories are: · TOP 5 (second edition) –The five best IR websites in Mexico. The winners of this prize are selected according to technical criteria, throughout December 2002. · POP+ (second edition) – The best IR website in Mexico. This prize is awarded based on votes by capital market participants, begun on 11/1/2002 and to be finished on 1/10/2003; · RAO 1 (second edition) – The best online annual report in Mexico. The prizes are awarded according to technical criteria, throughout December 2002. Commenting on today’s announcement, Ivan Lela, AMERI’s president, said: “We are very proud to share, with experienced and leading companies, projects in the Investor Relations area with the objective of increasing the professionalism, promotion, and diffusion of these activities, for an efficient performance of our profession.” Additionally, Alan Alanís, Vice-president of AMERI’s North Region mentioned: “We believe this agreement will give Mexican companies a big boost, as far as assuring a more open and

1/2 transparent communication with all of those involved with financial markets and we invite all Mexican companies to participate in this important event.” Rodolfo Zabisky, MZ Consult’s CEO, said: “There is no better partner than AMERI in Mexico for these awards and we are very proud to have entered this agreement. As with the recently closed agreement with KPMG Auditores Independentes (Brazil) for the POP+, the evaluation and identification process for the best IR sites and online annual reports will enjoy more credibility and transparency. Additionally, we have the opportunity to expand the number of companies running for POP+, which, up to date, has the following 17 Mexican companies registered (from a total of 81 Latin American companies): , Asur, BBVA Bancomer, Casa Saba, Casas Geo, , Coca-Cola Femsa, Consorcio Ara, Elektra, Femsa, , Iusacell, Soriana, Penoles, Radio Centro, TV Azteca, and Vitro.” About AMERI: Founded in 2002, the Mexican Association of Investor Relations has the mission of providing support, integration, collaboration and of representing all individuals and companies related to the strategic profession of investor relations in Mexico, to develop and promote the debt and equity markets, stimulating a world-class corporate culture relating to transparency and responsibility, based on the execution of the best practices that increase the ethical and professional standards of all its members. AMERI works so that in 2005 it is positioned as a global quality association, recognized for its international leadership and its contribution to the capital markets, with operations that reach all Latin America and whose financial solidity relies on the largest number of members in the emerging markets, certified investor relations professionals and that occupy strategic levels within the upper management of their companies. About MZ Consult: Founded in 1999 in Brazil, MZ Consult provides customized, creative and efficient investor relations and corporate financial services. The company is enjoying a phase of substantial growth, having rapidly reached an outstanding position in investor relations practices in Latin America. Its subsidiaries, MZ Corporate Communication and MZ Data Products have excelled by providing services in the development of annual reports, investor events, conference calls, webcasts and SEC electronic filings. MZ Consult is also responsible for the coordination and organization of the best Latin American Investor Relations websites awards (TOP 5 and POP+) and the best Annual Report Online (RAO 1). Among its clients are: AmBev, Banco Bradesco, Bradespar, CCR, Construtora Norberto Odebrecht (CNO), Net Serviços, Petrobras, Portugal Telecom, Sanepar, Telesp Celular and Unibanco.

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Contacts:

Iván Vela Rodolfo Zabisky AMERI MZ Consult (5255) 5480-5071 (5511) 6447-1872 [email protected] [email protected]

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