NEW YORK - TECHNOLOGY companies face a bumpy ride in 2009.

Global business and government spending on computer, software and communications products and consulting services is expected to decline 3 per cent this year, Forrester Research said in a report due out on Tuesday.

This would mark the first decline since 2002, when information-technology spending dropped 6 percent after falling the same amount in 2001.

However, this downturn is not expected to last as long. Forrester projects tech spending to recover next year, rising as much as 9 per cent in 2010.

In addition to the recession, the strengthening dollar is also to blame for the drop-off Forrester sees this year.

Just as the weak US currency boosted the growth rate of technology purchases made in dollars in 2008, the now-stronger dollar will hurt it in 2009, according to Forrester.

Western Europe's technology spending rate is a good illustration of the currency discrepancy: measured in dollars, tech purchases in the region will be down 7 per cent in 2009. Tech purchases in euros will be up 1 per cent.

To neutralise the effect of currency changes, Forrester also projected the global technology market using a 'basket' of local currencies, weighed for how big a share of the market each region holds. Using this measure, technology purchases are expected to have grown by 4 per cent in 2008 and post growth of 3 percent in 2009, and 6 per cent in 2010.

Certain aspects of technology will fare better. For example, Forrester expects software purchases to total $388 billion (S$577.8 billion) this year, the same as in 2008.

But computer equipment purchases - which includes personal computers, servers and storage devices - are expected to decline 4 percent, to $434 billion.

That's because businesses often see software as a moneysaving tool, while buying new computer equipment is something that can be put off until more prosperous times. -- AP