Fidelity launches Municipal Bond Unit Investment Trusts

Business Wire, March 6, 1997

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 6, 1997--Fidelity Defined Trusts, a unit of Fidelity Capital Markets, today introduced a series of unit investment trust (UIT) products. Fidelity Defined Trust Municipal Income Trusts, Series 1, includes two state-specific products, the Insured Massachusetts Series and the Insured Pennsylvania Series.

These products are designed for investors looking for triple tax-free income from a portfolio of state-specific municipal bonds insured by Municipal Bond Investors Assurance Corporation (MBIA). The units are rated AAA. Pricing for the Insured Massachusetts and Insured Pennsylvania Series occurred today.

"Fidelity Municipal Income Trusts are designed to provide investors with dependable, tax-free monthly income," says Dan Waldron, product manager of Fidelity Defined Trusts. Fidelity also is considering a national Municipal Income Trust (MIT) and other state-specific MITs in the months ahead, Waldron said.

These products are available to individual customers by phone or through Fidelity's national network of 82 Investor Centers. They also are distributed by Fidelity Investments Institutional Services Company to investment professionals at brokerage firms, banks, insurance companies and other advisory firms.

The UITs are sponsored by Fidelity Capital Markets, a division of National Financial Services Corporation, the registered broker/dealer subsidiary of Fidelity Investments.

UITs are diversified portfolios of passively managed securities. Such portfolios offer investors two benefits not found in a fully managed mutual fund. First, their expense ratios are substantially lower, which results in more income being passed through to unit holders. Second, the units maintain the investment characteristics of the underlying securities -- defined maturity date, maturity value and income rate.

"MBIA insurance also provides a layer of credit protection, alleviating any worries investors may have about credit risk," Waldron adds.

Fidelity Investments is the nation's largest mutual fund company and one of the leading providers of financial services. Fidelity offers investment management, retirement, brokerage and shareholder services directly to individuals and institutions, and through financial intermediaries. The firm also is the No. 1 provider of 401(k) retirement savings plans, the second largest discount brokerage firm and the third largest provider of 403(b) retirement plans for not-for-profit institutions in the United States. At December 31, 1996, Fidelity had total managed assets of $496.3 billion. -0-

Fidelity Brokerage Services, Inc., member NYSE/SIPC.

An investment in the Fidelity Advisor Defined Trusts may involve potential risks. An investment in the Trust may be subject to interest rate, credit, prepayment, or call risks, especially if the Trust is not held to maturity. The Fidelity Advisor Defined Trusts are distributed by National Financial Services Corporation.

CONTACT: Fidelity Investments

Andy Trincia

(617) 563-5800 REPEATS: New York 212-752-9600 or 800-221-2462; Boston 617-236-4266 or