Moreover, the global economy deteriorated steadily in 2001: in particular because of slower economic growth in the U.S., the cutbacks in capital spending among businesses, especially in the telecommunications industry, and the slump in semicon-ductor prices due to overly high inventories. The consequence: A 72 percent drop in share prices of chip manufacturers and thus of the leading U.S. index, namely SOX (Philadelphia Semiconductor Index), starting at its peak in March 2000 and decreasing until September 2001. At the same time, the DAX, which is the leading German index, dropped 46 percent, a clear sign of the downturn in business confidence.