Our valuation work for the S&P 500 has long assumed moderation of profit growth to about 8 percent from 20 percent and a rise in core inflation.

The principal conclusion is that we expect profit growth to continue through our new forecast horizon.

The principal conclusion is that we expect profit growth to continue through our new forecast horizon,

We expect 1999 and 2000 to be years of ongoing profit expansion, with better aggregate gains than 1998, which was disappointing.

We believe the stock's sell-off is attributed to the moderation of top-line growth at MPS due to its focus on margins, and a lower than expected first quarter outlook from a competitor.

In the long term, though, I think the moderation of growth that we'll witness in 2001 will be a mostly healthy thing,