First Trust Advisors L.P. Announces Zero Capital Gains Distributions for 2008 in 37 of its 38 Exchange-Traded Funds

  
    
  
  
    
      First Trust Advisors L.P. (“FTA”) announced today that only one of the 
      38 exchange-traded funds advised by FTA, First Trust FTSE EPRA/NAREIT 
      Global Real Estate Index Fund, is distributing capital gains in 2008.
    
    
      Expected capital gain distributions for 2008.
    
    
      
        
           
        
      
      
        
        
        
           
        
        
        
        
           
        
        
          Short-Term
        
        
           
        
        
          Long-Term
        
        
           
        
        
        
        
           
        
        
        
        
           
        
        
        
        
           
        
        
        
      
      
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
          Capital Gain
        
        
        
        
          Capital Gain
        
        
        
        
          Total Capital
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
          Ex-Dividend
        
        
        
        
          Payable
        
      
      
        
          Ticker
        
        
           
        
        
          Fund Name
        
        
           
        
        
          Per Share
        
        
           
        
        
          Per Share
        
        
           
        
        
          Gain Per Share
        
        
           
        
        
          % of NAV*
        
        
           
        
        
          Date
        
        
           
        
        
          Date
        
      
      
        
          FFR
        
        
        
        
          First Trust FTSE EPRA/NAREIT
        
        
        
        
          $0.0000
        
        
        
        
          $0.0111
        
        
        
        
          $0.0111
        
        
        
        
          0.0473%
        
        
        
        
          12/23/08
        
        
        
        
          12/31/08
        
      
      
        
        
        
        
        
          Global Real Estate Index Fund
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
      
    
    
      *Based on the NAV as of 12/22/2008. The final determination of the 
      source and tax status of 2008 distributions for this fund will be made 
      after the end of 2008.
    
    
      “We are especially pleased that our exchange-traded funds have again 
      provided tax efficient market exposure. Taxes are especially critical 
      during market downturns because every penny counts,” said Dan Waldron, 
      Senior Vice President and head of exchange-traded funds for FTA. “In a 
      year when investors have positive returns, a capital gains tax bill may 
      not come as a surprise. But, when investments are down, getting a tax 
      bill on top of significant losses is like adding insult to injury. This 
      year has been a harsh reminder of the need for tax efficiency and 
      transparency. Keeping what you earn and knowing what you own have been 
      our fundamental principles for years and this is a year where it really 
      hits home.”
    
    
      About First Trust
    
    
      First Trust Advisors L.P., the Fund’s investment advisor, along with its 
      affiliate First Trust Portfolios L.P., are privately-held companies 
      which provide a variety of investment services, including asset 
      management, financial advisory services, and municipal and corporate 
      investment banking, with collective assets under management or 
      supervision of over $17 billion as of November 30, 2008 through 
      closed-end funds, unit investment trusts, mutual funds, separate managed 
      accounts and exchange-traded funds. For more information, please visit www.ftportfolios.com.
    
    
      You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and 
      expenses of a Fund before investing. Prospectuses for the Funds contain 
      this and other important information and are available free of charge by 
      calling toll-free at 1-800-621-1675 or visiting www.ftportfolios.com. 
      A prospectus should be read carefully before investing.
    
    
      Principal Risk Factors: A Fund’s shares will change in value, and you 
      could lose money by investing in a Fund. An investment in a Fund 
      involves risk similar to those of investing in any fund of equity 
      securities traded on exchanges. A Fund seeks investments results that 
      correspond generally to the price and yield of an index. You should 
      anticipate that the value of a Fund’s shares will decline, more or less, 
      in correlation with any decline in the value of the index. A Fund’s 
      return may not match the return of the index. A Fund may invest in small 
      capitalization and mid capitalization companies. Such companies may 
      experience greater price volatility than larger, more established 
      companies.
    
    
      Investors buying or selling Fund shares on the secondary market may 
      incur brokerage commissions. Investors who sell Fund shares may receive 
      less than the share’s net asset value. Unlike shares of open-end mutual 
      funds, investors are generally not able to purchase Fund shares directly 
      from the Fund and individual shares are not redeemable. However, 
      specified large blocks of shares called “creation units” can be 
      purchased from, or redeemed to, the Fund.