THUMBS DOWN: No Tech Comeback

There's little hope that technologystocks will rebound in the comingyear, according to some analysts, andthe reason is that demand from endusers is still feeble. The fact that techstocks are still expensive by mostmeasures also makes a return of theboom years look like a long shot. Thekey indicator for technology is thechip sector, since chips supply thebrains for all computerized gizmos,from PCs to global positioning systems.Since corporate America hasfrozen its budget for new technologyor even slashed it, the outlook forchips isn't very rosy. Low prices addto technology's woes—fire sales onPCs and peripherals have alreadypushed prices to new lows andindustry mavens forecast another10% dip by summer.