Interim Management Statement

INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT

For Quarter Ending 30 April 2009

Material developments

  * Over the first quarter, NAV including income rose 2.5%, against the FTSE
    100 Index which rose 2.3%. During January and February global stock markets
    tumbled, as the severity of the recession was grasped. However, following
    meaningful policy initiatives, stocks have since staged a significant
    recovery from their March lows.
   
  * Economic indicators remain weak. Although we have seen improvements in the
    global banking system, unemployment has risen and consumer spending has
    collapsed.
   
  * Recent stock market rallies (the S&P 500 has rallied 27.8% (in local terms)
    and the FTSE 100 20.4% from their March lows) reflect the belief that
    policy measures will have a positive effect on future earnings, the economy
    and the financial system.
   
  * Interest rate policy remains very accommodative and quantitative easing has
    added over $400bn to global liquidity. Commodity prices have followed
    stocks and moved significantly higher; oil was up 20%, copper 45%, zinc 30%
    and aluminium 25%. Gold has fallen by 5%, with sterling relatively flat.
   
  * The Trust has maintained its defensive bias although the level of cash in
    the portfolio has been reduced from 10.5% to 4.7%. Less defensive stocks
    have rallied most and we have realigned some of the geographic portfolios
    within the Trust to reflect the value appearing in early cyclical stocks.
   
  * At sector level our largest overweight positions are Tobacco, Support
    Services and Oil & Gas. We remain underweight in Banks, General Financials
    and Technology.
   
  * The outlook for the world economy is poor. We anticipate that economic
    growth will remain weak throughout 2009 with signs of recovery being
    delayed until early 2010. The world stock markets believe that the global
    economic stimulus package will have the desired effect and consequently
    equity valuations will move higher. We remain cautiously optimistic in the
    medium term and continue to seek investment opportunities in companies with
    strong balance sheets and high quality management.
   
KEY FACTS

Total Net Assets:   £2,173.9m                      
                                                   
Total Return from                                  
31/01/09                                           
to 30/04/09:        8.7%                           
                                                   
NAV:                322.4p+                        
                                                   
The NAV is published daily on our website          
www.alliancetrust.co.uk                            
                                                   
Share price*:       289.0p+                        
                                                   
Discount:           9.9%+                          
                                                   
Total Expense Ratio                                
(year to 31/01/09): 0.70%                          
                                                   
* Source: Factset   + At 30 April 2009             

ASSET ALLOCATION %

Equities       82.9
                   
Private         2.8
Equity             
                   
Preference      0.9
Shares             
                   
Subsidiaries    1.7
                   
Property        2.9
                   
Other           3.4
investments        
                   
Cash            7.0
                   
Other Net       0.8
Assets             
                   
Gross Assets  102.3
                   
Gearing       (2.3)
                   
Net Assets    100.0

EQUITY PORTFOLIO DISTRIBUTION

GEOGRAPHIC EQUITY ONLY           INDUSTRY EQUITY ONLY     
                                                          
                         %                               %
                                                          
UK Large Cap          31.8       Financial            16.9
                                                          
N America             24.6       Oil & Gas            16.1
                                                          
Global                14.1       Industrials          16.0
                                                          
Europe                11.4       Consumer Goods       10.3
                                                          
Asia                   9.8       Health Care           8.3
                                                          
UK Mid Cap             6.7       Technology            7.9
                                                          
Japan                  1.4       Basic Materials       7.4
                                                          
                                 Consumer Services     7.2
                                                          
                                 Telecommunications    5.6
                                                          
                                 Utilities             4.3

Top 20 investments

Rank     Movement     Rank last    Name                        Value £m       
                      qtr                                                     
                                                                              
1        â–²            (2)          BP                          67.0           
                                                                              
2        â–¼            (1)          Royal Dutch Shell `B'       62.9           
                                                                              
3        â–²            (4)          Vodafone                    43.9           
                                                                              
4        â–¼            (3)          GlaxoSmithKline             41.7           
                                                                              
5        â–²            (7)          BHP Billiton                40.7           
                                                                              
6        â–¼            (5)          British American Tobacco    35.1           
                                                                              
7        â–²            (13)         Diamond Offshore Drilling   28.1           
                                                                              
8        -            (8)          Philip Morris               28.0           
                                                                              
9        â–¼            (6)          New York Community Bancorp  27.6           
                                                                              
10       â–²            (15)         Petro-Canada                25.3           
                                                                              
11       â–¼            (10)         Republic Services           24.7           
                                                                              
12       â–²            (16)         Total                       22.9           
                                                                              
13       â–¼            (11)         Johnson & Johnson           22.9           
                                                                              
14       (new)                     HSBC                        22.8           
                                                                              
15       â–¼            (9)          Abbot Laboratories          21.6           
                                                                              
16       (new)                     Standard Chartered          21.6           
                                                                              
17       (new)                     InterOil                    21.1           
                                                                              
18       â–¼            (17)         Verizon                     21.0           
                                                                              
19       â–¼            (18)         Reckitt Benckiser           20.6           
                                                                              
20       â–¼            (14)         Scottish and Southern       20.3           
                                   Energy                                     

Imperial Tobacco, Centrica and Unilever have dropped out of the Top 20.

Total Equity Investments: £1,802.2m

Top 10 as % of Net Assets: 18.4% Top 20 as % of Total: 28.5%

SECTOR WEIGHTINGS

Top 5 overweight/underweight sector holdings**†

                                  Overweight/
                               (underweight)%
                                             
Support Services                          3.6
                                             
Tobacco                                   3.2
                                             
Oil & Gas Producers                       3.0
                                             
Mining                                    2.3
                                             
Life Insurance                            1.6
                                             
General Retailers                       (1.8)
                                             
Industrial Metals                       (1.9)
                                             
Software & Computer                     (2.0)
Services                                     
                                             
Banks                                   (2.2)
                                             
General Financial                       (2.5)

Top 5 active overweight/underweight holdings**†

                                  Overweight/
                               (underweight)%
                                             
BP                                        2.9
                                             
Royal Dutch Shell                         2.6
                                             
BHP Billiton                              1.9
                                             
Vodafone                                  1.8
                                             
GlaxoSmithKline                           1.8
                                             
International Business                  (0.7)
Machines                                     
                                             
Wal-Mart                                (0.8)
                                             
AT&T                                    (0.8)
                                             
Microsoft                               (0.9)
                                             
Exxon Mobil                             (1.7)

Holding weights are calculated as a % of Total Equity.

**FTSE All-World Index used

† Weightings are calculated on a look-through basis whereby holdings in the
Trust are combined with those of Alliance Trust Asset Management's funds to
calculate total exposure.

For further information, please contact:

Evan Bruce-Gardyne

Head of Investor Relations

Alliance Trust PLC

8 West Marketgait

Dundee

DD1 1QN

Tel: [phone]

Email: [e-mail]