IDC: Slowdown In U.S. Technology Spending But Remains Bullish On Long-Term Worldwide Growth.

The slowing U.S. economy is affecting the growth of worldwide spending on technology products and services. In the United States, growth of 11% in 2000 will fall to 7% in 2001. Despite regional fluctuations related to economic conditions, however, IDC believes global IT spending will remain healthy, growing 9% in 2001.

“Notwithstanding warnings of an imminent slowdown in the U.S economy, the big picture of global spending on technology products and services remains broadly healthy,” said Stephen Minton, manager of IDC’s Worldwide IT Markets and Strategies research. “In North America, spending on some segments of software and services appears much more stable than in hardware segments, and the fundamentals of growth in technology usage remain present. Additionally, IT spending remains strong in Western Europe, where spending on Internet- related infrastructure and front-end software applications and services continues to push technology into the heart of business strategy.”

IDC believes the strongest IT growth opportunities can be found in emerging markets throughout Latin America, Eastern Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa — even in the hardware segments, where suppliers in the United States and Western Europe are being hardest hit. In India, for example, growth of hardware spending is expected to reach 29% in 2001. Overall, spending on software and services will account for an increasing share of worldwide technology spending.

In Japan, economic uncertainty continues to hamper IT growth, with slightly lower IT spending growth predicted in 2001, at less than 7%. However, in other parts of Asia, technology growth is more impressive. One of the strongest markets in Asia, Australia, is expected to post 10% growth in 2002 and beyond.

For more information at http://www.idc.com.