EXHIBIT 99.1


                          BANCORPSOUTH COMPLETES MERGER
           WITH AMERICAN STATE BANK CORPORATION OF JONESBORO, ARKANSAS


TUPELO, Miss. - (November 30, 2005) - BancorpSouth, Inc., (NYSE:BXS) announced
today from its corporate headquarters in Tupelo, Mississippi the completion of
its merger with American State Bank Corporation of Jonesboro, Arkansas and the
merger of American State Bank with its subsidiary BancorpSouth Bank, to be
effective December 1, 2005. The merger expands BancorpSouth's Arkansas market
presence into Northeast Arkansas, giving BancorpSouth 59 offices in Arkansas and
approximately $1.9 billion in deposits.

BancorpSouth Chairman and CEO Aubrey B. Patterson said, "The merger of American
State Bank Corporation with BancorpSouth allows our bank to expand its already
strong position in Arkansas. BancorpSouth gains the benefit of an established
presence in the Northeast Arkansas market, and the customers and employees of
the former American State Bank will benefit from additional products and
services of an $11.5 billion, community-oriented banking system."

Jim Kelley, President and COO of BancorpSouth, said, "American State Bank and
BancorpSouth have virtually identical operating philosophies. Community-oriented
banking and local decision-making have been the keys to the success of both
organizations. This is a great fit for both banks."

American State Bank Corporation Chairman and CEO Frank Oldham added, "This
merger enables us to partner with one of the most respected financial
institutions in the South while we continue to provide our customers with the
local, hometown customer service to which they have become accustomed." With the
merger, Oldham becomes BancorpSouth's Regional President for Northeast Arkansas.

Prior to the merger, American State Bank Corporation was a privately held
Arkansas corporation headquartered in Jonesboro. The company was the parent of
American State Bank, a wholly owned state chartered subsidiary bank with
approximately $292 million in deposits and $358 million in assets as of
September 30, 2005. Originally formed in 1908 as the Bank of Wilson in Wilson,
Arkansas, American State Bank conducted banking business through 11 branches in
Jonesboro, Paragould, Pocahontas, Marmaduke, Osceola and Wilson. The company
also owned American State Trust and Financial Services, Inc., which provided
trust services, investment brokerage, investment management and financial
retirement and estate planning.

Headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi, BancorpSouth, taking into account the
merger, is an $11.5 billion asset banking company that operates 271 commercial
banking, mortgage, insurance, trust and broker/dealer locations in Alabama,
Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas with 272 ATMs and has a
staff of approximately 4,000 full-time employees. BancorpSouth and its
subsidiaries provide, in addition to traditional banking services, mortgage
origination and servicing, student loans, leasing, credit card, trust and
fiduciary services, brokerage, investment and insurance services.


FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

Certain statements contained in this news release may not be based on historical
facts and are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of
the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements may be
identified by reference to a future period(s) or by the use of forward-




looking terminology, such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect,"
"foresee," "may," "might," "will," "intend," "could," "would" or "plan," or
future or conditional verb tenses, and variations or negatives of such terms.
These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, those relating to
benefits for customers and employees of the former American State Bank.

We caution you not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements
contained in this news release, in that actual results could differ materially
from those indicated in such forward-looking statements as a result of a variety
of factors. These factors include, but are not limited to, BancorpSouth's
ability to successfully integrate American State Bank after the merger, the
ability of BancorpSouth to provide and market competitive services and products,
the ability of BancorpSouth to attract, train and retain qualified personnel,
the ability of BancorpSouth to expand geographically and enter fast-growing
markets, changes in consumer preferences, changes in BancorpSouth's operating
strategy, changes in economic conditions and government fiscal and monetary
policies, fluctuations in prevailing interest rates and the ability of
BancorpSouth to manage its assets and liabilities to limit exposure to changing
interest rates, changes in laws and regulations affecting financial
institutions, the ability of BancorpSouth to manage its growth and effectively
serve an expanding customer and market base, the geographic concentrations of
BancorpSouth's assets, the ability of BancorpSouth to compete with other
financial services companies, possible adverse rulings, judgments, settlements
and other outcomes of pending or threatened litigation or tax assessments, other
factors generally understood to affect the financial condition or results of
financial services companies and other factors detailed from time to time in
BancorpSouth's press releases and filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. We undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking
statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this
news release.


                                      # # #