MEDIA RESOURCES

WACHOVIA SECURITIES CHIEF INVESTMENT STRATEGIST ROD SMYTH
KEYNOTES FREE SEMINAR AT SMU ON WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25

Passing the Growth Baton: Moving to a More Balanced Global Economy

DALLAS, TX –

Rod Smyth, chief investment strategist with Wachovia Securities, will discuss his outlook for the market, business and the economy in 2006 and beyond in a free seminar to be held on Wednesday, January 25 at Southern Methodist University’s Cox School of Business.

The seminar, titled "Outlook 2006: Passing the Growth Baton – Moving to a More Balanced Global Economy," is sponsored by the Metroplex offices of Wachovia Securities in Dallas. A cocktail reception will be held at 5:30 p.m. with the presentation to follow.

Mr. Smyth, a nationally known market commentator, will discuss his outlook for the stock and bond markets in the months ahead and share his expectations on a number of factors affecting the economy. Specifically, Mr. Smyth will focus on the principal drivers of global growth, the opportunities and challenges facing the 21st century global economy, and how industry sectors and international economies may benefit from today’s trends.

About Rod Smyth

As Chief Investment Strategist for Wachovia Securities – the retail brokerage subsidiary of Wachovia Corporation and the nation’s third largest brokerage firm by client assets – Mr. Smyth has two decades of Global Investment experience. He has lived and worked in the securities industry in Asia, Europe and North America.

For the last nine years, Mr. Smyth has been with Wachovia Securities and its predecessor organizations, First Union Securities and Wheat First Securities in Richmond, Virginia, initially as the Managing Director of Mentor Perpetual Advisors and more recently, as the Chief Investment Officer for Evergreen Investments, a Wachovia Corporation subsidiary.

Mr. Smyth brings a broad perspective and extensive experience to his work. He started his career in Japan with Nomura Securities in 1983 and worked as an Asian specialist for Citicorp on Wall Street from 1985 to 1988. From 1988 to 1993, he returned to his native Ireland where he was a portfolio manager for a local bank, managing portfolios in Asian, US, and Latin American markets. In 1993 Smyth returned to Asia as the investment strategist for Baring Securities in Tokyo. Mr. Smyth has been with Wachovia Securities since 1996 and was appointed Chief Investment Strategist in 2000. He has an MA in Economics from Dundee University in Scotland.

About Wachovia Securities

The nation's third largest full service retail brokerage firm with more than $680 billion in client assets, Wachovia Securities provides financial advisory, brokerage, asset management and other financial services through more than 10,400 registered representatives in more than 2,800 locations nationwide.* Wachovia Securities is the trade name used by two separate, registered broker-dealers and non-bank affiliates of Wachovia Corporation providing certain retail securities brokerage services: Wachovia Securities, LLC, member NYSE/SIPC, and Wachovia Securities Financial Network, LLC, member NASD/SIPC *As of 9/30/2005.

About SMU Cox School of Business

SMU’s Cox School of Business offers a full range of business education programs, including BBA, full-time MBA, Professional MBA (PMBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), Master of Science in Management (MSM), and Executive Education. The school also offers a number of unique resources and activities for students, ranging from its Business Leadership Center (BLC), Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship, Maguire Energy Institute, and American Airlines Global Leadership Program (AAGLP) to its Associate Board Executive Mentoring Program and an international alumni network with chapters in more than 20 countries. SMU Cox is ranked among the top business schools nationally and internationally by major publications, including BusinessWeek, The Economist, Financial Times, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and U.S. News & World Report.