Word of the Day

Commodity

Even if you don't think you do, you already know plenty about commodities. Want us to prove it? No problem.

What makes oil produced in Saudi Arabia different from oil exported from Nigeria? It's the same thing that makes the corn you ate at last summer¿s barbecue different from the corn used to produce ethanol. Stumped? Well, don't feel bad, it's a trick question. The answer? Absolutely nothing. Corn is corn no matter where it comes from -- just as wheat is wheat and natural gas is -- right! -- natural gas. (Though the quality may differ, the make-up is uniform.)

So, in less elaborate terms, corn and oil (and all other commodities) are homogenous goods that can be processed, resold and more often than not, used as an input to the production of other goods or services. These goods are traded on a commodity exchange, thus setting the price-per-barrel (or other metric unit) used to value them.

Now pay attention, here's a question that indeed does have an answer: What is the difference between a commodity and a stock? While a stock can tank and become worthless, a commodity cannot have its value be wiped to zero. One other difference: Most commodities are traded in futures, meaning traders buy and sell where they think the price of a product will be at a certain point in the future. Stocks trade based on the value of the underlying company at that point in time.

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Tuesday, July 01, 2008

WaMu Second Quarter 2008 Earnings Release and Conference Call

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Comtex

SEATTLE, Jul 01, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Washington Mutual, Inc. (NYSE: WM) will release its second quarter 2008 earnings on Tuesday, July 22, 2008, following the close of the New York Stock Exchange. WaMu CEO Kerry Killinger and CFO Tom Casey will review WaMu's second quarter results by telephone and live audio webcast beginning at 5 p.m. ET. The earnings release and additional materials will be available on the Internet at wamu.com/ir.

To participate, please access one of the following 10 minutes prior to the live event:

Dial-In Number:

1-888-324-6919 for U.S. callers

1-312-470-7289 for International callers

Access code: WaMu

Internet:

The live and archived audio webcast will be accessible by clicking on the link to the Q2 2008 Earnings Conference Call at wamu.com/ir.

The telephone replay will be available approximately one hour following the conclusion of the live event and continuing through 11:59 p.m. ET on Friday, August 1, 2008. To listen to the replay, dial 1-888-568-0151 for U.S. callers and 1-203-369-3462 for International callers.

About WaMu

WaMu, through its subsidiaries, is one of the nation's leading consumer and small business banks. At March 31, 2008, WaMu and its subsidiaries had assets of $319.67 billion. The company has a history dating back to 1889 and its subsidiary banks currently operate approximately 2,500 consumer and small business banking stores throughout the nation. WaMu's financial reports and news releases are available at wamu.com/ir.

SOURCE: WaMu

WaMu Media: Derek Aney, 206-500-6094 or 212-326-6075 derek.aney@wamu.net or Investor
   Relations: Alan Magleby, 206-500-4148 or 212-702-6955 alan.magleby@wamu.net

Copyright Business Wire 2008 **********************************************************************
   As of Friday, 06-27-2008 23:59, the latest Comtex SmarTrend� Alert, an automated pattern recognition system, indicated a DOWNTREND
   on 02-12-2008 for WM @ $17.12. For more information on SmarTrend, contact your market data provider or go to www.mysmartrend.com
   SmarTrend is a registered trademark of Comtex News Network, Inc. Copyright � 2004-2008 Comtex News Network, Inc. All rights
   reserved.