Stanley Gibbons Group Limited
25 October 2002

NEWS RELEASE

25 October 2002

For immediate release

STANLEY GIBBONS LAUNCHES STAMP PRICE INDEX



With interest in rare stamp investment gaining momentum and prices for 'classic'
material on the increase again, Stanley Gibbons has launched its 'SG100' Stamp
Index to provide an accurate and objective measure to the current state of the
market.

At a time when stock markets are performing so erratically the attention of
individual and corporate investors is turning once again to 'alternative'
investments. Stamps are receiving more than their fair share of attention, with
interest fuelled by the long-term stability of the market, the solid collector
base -estimated to number some 30 million worldwide- and the fact that stamps
offer a 'portability' superior to other potential investments.

As any philatelist will tell you, the prices being asked and paid for specialist
stamps and covers provides plenty of evidence that the financial future for
stamps is very good indeed. However, there has clearly been a need for an
accurate and authoritative guide to assist both collectors and non-philatelists
in identifying the opportunities open to them.

The SG100 Stamp Index

The SG100 has been designed to provide the definitive measure of overall market
performance and a yardstick against which to measure individual price increases.
Stanley Gibbons believes that it will serve to highlight the real price
increases being achieved, especially among classic GB and Commonwealth stamps.

The index is based on actual prices, either retail or at auction, for 100 of the
world's most frequently traded stamps and includes selected items from all major
collecting areas: GB, Commonwealth and many foreign countries. It is weighted
towards the most frequently traded and higher value stamps and its components
will be carefully reassessed each year to ensure that it continues to reflect
the total market accurately.

It is planned that the Index will be updated in Gibbons Stamp Monthly, the UK's
leading philatelic magazine, each month, with specialist comment on general
trends and price movements of individual stamps, countries and collecting areas,
under the title 'Market Watch'. Details will also be available on
www.stanleygibbons.com, the Company's website.

                                     -more-





'Performance'

The initial analysis shows that the SG100 Index has increased by 31.2 per cent
over the last five years (an average of 6 per cent per annum), comparing very
favourably with other investments. The increase in the past year alone has been
8.3 per cent.



The picture for Great Britain stamps is even more attractive, with a five-year
growth of 39.5 per cent - 10.6 percent in the last year, assisted by individual
performers like the Queen Victoria #5 orange, fine used, which rose nearly 40
per cent last year, from #1800 to #2500.



Mike Hall, Finance Director, comments: 'The launch of the SG 100 Stamp Index
will enable investors, dealers and collectors to make informed decisions based
on factual up-to-date information on the stamp market. The Index will
objectively demonstrate the stable growth performance which the stamp market
enjoys. It should encourage more investors to choose stamps as an alternative
means of achieving the returns they have failed to obtain from traditional
investment routes in recent years.'

                                     -ends-







For further information, please contact:

Paul Fraser - Chairman          Telephone: 020 7836 8444

Michael Hall - Finance Director     Telephone: 01425 472363

Richard Purkis - PR               Telephone: 020 7557 4428




                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END

NRABBBDGBBDGGDU