IT spending has been hit by the bad economy, and the turnaround will be slow. A new Forrester Research report is now forecasting that the IT spending growth rate will be only 1.6 percent next year, down from an earlier 6.1 percent projected increase. But Forrester analyst Andrew Bartels said there may be some growth, however small, by this summer.

Among the reasons:

• The steep drop in gas prices means lower energy costs, and probably more money for technology investments.
• Major export markets, such as Brazil, Russia, India and China, are still growing and will need exports.
• President-elect Obama's economic stimulus plan may include $700 billion to $800 billion in new investments, many of which will involve technology.

Bartels said IT, like every other industrial sector, could be affected by the steady diet of bad news on the economic front. "There is so much doom and gloom--it could almost become a self-fulfilling prophecy," he said.

For more on Forrester's predictions:
- check out this Computerworld.com article

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