In the fourth quarter of 2008, venture capitalists raised only US$3.37 billion, down a staggering 71% from the year-ago quarter, according to a January 20 release by Thomson Reuters and the National Venture Capital Association. This is the smallest amount of money raised since the second quarter of 2004. The size of the average fund and the number of funds able to scare up capital is also rapidly shrinking.

European Union finance ministers warned that they are running out of room to spend money to boost their economies, as Germany predicted its economy would shrink at least 2% this year and Hungary's currency fell to a record low despite recent efforts to prop it up.

Ericsson, the world's largest telecom equipment manufacturer, has reported a 31% drop in fourth-quarter net profit, hit by a lower gross margin and restructuring costs, and said it would cut 5,000 jobs.

Singapore's economy may shrink a record 5% this year as exports slump, increasing pressure on the government to take steps to help businesses and consumers. The export-dependent nation has been battered by declining orders for electronics goods and pharmaceuticals from its biggest customers in the US and Europe, as well as emerging markets.

Flextronics, a contract manufacturer that supplies about 75% of Nortel's finished product around the world, warned last week it is working to reduce its exposure to the Toronto-based company after Nortel filed for court protection from creditors.

Gadgets made by a host of big-name manufacturers, including Nokia and HTC, could be banned from import into the US, if a patent violation investigation being conducted the US International Trade Commission (ITC) rules in the claimant's favor.

The sleek racing machine that was the US economy is unlikely to return any time soon despite the huge repair efforts now underway. Instead, it probably will continue to sputter and threaten to stall for years to come.

Speaking in Egypt, at a summit on the Gaza crisis, Mr Brown said he hoped the move would make it easier for firms and households to obtain credit. What the government wanted was to get "the resumption of lending" he added.

In his usual no-nonsense manner, CEO TJ Rodgers described how he is navigating Cypress Semiconductor through bad economic conditions, and denied that the solar industry is losing competiveness as oil prices decline.

Infineon Technologies (Kulim) Sdn Bhd, Germany-based Infineon's front-end wafer fabrication plant at the Kulim Hi-Tech Park, will not retrench any of its 1,000 workers despite of the global economic downturn.

The deepening financial crisis, which is undermining the government's rescue efforts, is prompting federal officials to revisit the original bailout measures. "There's no doubt that we needed to stabilize the banking system," Obama told CNN's John King Friday.

Cymer. which makes lasers used in semiconductor manufacturing, is cutting 10% of its work force and slashing pay and benefits as sharply lower demand cuts into revenue, the company said late Thursday.