Monthly Performance

Merrill Lynch UK Inv Tst PLC
12 September 2002


MONTHLY PERFORMANCE
MERRILL LYNCH UK INVESTMENT TRUST plc
All information is at 30 August 2002 and unaudited.

Performance at month end with net income reinvested
                                        One              Three               One              Three               Five
                                      month             months              year              years              years
Net asset value                        0.5%             -19.0%            -28.8%             -41.5%             -19.9%
Share price                           -1.5%             -20.5%            -34.7%             -49.0%             -31.7%
FTSE All-Share Index                   0.3%             -16.6%            -18.7%             -24.9%               2.0%

 Sources: Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, Standard & Poor's Micropal

At month end
Net asset value*                                                             687.67p
Share price:                                                                 563.00p
Discount:                                                                      18.1%
Total assets:                                                                £130.3m
Net Yield:                                                                      5.1%
Gearing:                                                                       43.5%
Effective gearing:                                                             14.5%
Value of debt:                                                                £39.5m
Ordinary shares in issue:                                                 13,393,799

*Includes current year net revenue of 9.8p.

UK Sectors                                                                       % Total Assets

Financials                                                                                 24.8
Cyclical Services                                                                          13.8
Non-Cyclical Consumer Goods                                                                13.8
Resources                                                                                  12.2
Non-Cyclical Services                                                                       8.2
Basic Industries                                                                            2.3
General Industrials                                                                         1.7
Information Technology                                                                      1.5
Utilities                                                                                   1.4
Cash                                                                                       21.9
Net current liabilities                                                                   (1.6)
Total                                                                                    100.0


Ten Largest Equity Investments
Company
                                                                                  % Investments

BP                                                                                          9.9
HSBC                                                                                        6.3
HBOS                                                                                        6.2
Barclays                                                                                    5.6
GlaxoSmithKline                                                                             5.0
Royal Bank of Scotland                                                                      4.9
Vodafone                                                                                    4.5
AstraZeneca                                                                                 3.9
Amersham                                                                                    3.4
Next                                                                                        2.8
Total                                                                                      52.5


Market commentary

UK Stockmarket Review

Although UK stockmarkets stabilised in August they were unable to reverse the
steep declines of July. Shares rallied over the first few weeks but mixed
economic data and continued uncertainty over Middle East tensions detracted from
the market upswing, and the FTSE All Share Index ended the month up just 0.3%.
At sector level, pharmaceuticals were the main detractor from performance, as
AstraZeneca declined following further disappointments around potential new
product launches. Banks also served as a drag on the market. Positive
contributions came from telecoms and oils, which maintained their solid relative
performance. Although pharmaceutical shares suffered over the period, demand for
other defensive shares grew, particularly in the utilities, tobacco and personal
care areas.

Performance Review

The Company's Net Asset Value (NAV) rose 0.5% in August, outperforming the FTSE
All Share Index.

Performance was aided by our avoidance of Lloyds TSB which fell on investors'
concerns about its large life insurance business.  The life insurance sector in
general suffered on concerns that falling stockmarkets would continue to
undermine solvency ratios. Other contributors to performance included airports
operator BAA, construction company Alfred McAlpine and consumer packaging
company Rexam.

Within the poorly performing pharmaceuticals sector, the holding in AstraZeneca
made a negative contribution to returns.  In contrast, healthcare companies
Amersham and Smith & Nephew boosted performance.  Our holding in British Land
also contributed to underperformance as the property sector was led down by
concerns over vacant office space.

Outlook

Although we believe that UK shares are now attractively valued, especially
relative to bonds, it is likely that the stockmarket will remain unsettled over
the coming months. We remain cautious, but will take advantage of stockmarket
falls to increase our exposure to high quality companies where value is
compelling.

Latest information is available by typing www.mlim.co.uk/its on the internet,
'MLIMINDEX' on Reuters, 'MLIM' on Bloomberg or '8800' on Topic 3 (ICV terminal).

11 September 2002




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