NEW YORK, Aug. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Stock Exchange(R) (Amex(R)) opened trading on Merrill Lynch's Bear Market STARS Linked to the S&P Small Cap Regional Banks Index. Priced at $10.00 per unit with an initial offer size of 4,950,000 units, this equity trades under the ticker symbol BCU and has a maturity date of February 02, 2010. The notes are issued by Merrill Lynch. The Amex specialist unit is AGS/STR/OTA. If you would like to receive a copy of the prospectus for BCU, please visit the American Stock Exchange website at http://www.amex.com/. The American Stock Exchange(R) (Amex(R)) 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 416 ETFs to date. 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: Maryellen Carew of American Stock Exchange, +1-212-306-1440, Web site: http://www.amex.com/

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