Focusing in on the sound businesses

The importance of the technology theme for the continued long-term performance of the US economy and stock market should not be under-estimated but neither should the risks that exist in the short term. The euphoria that surrounded technology during 1999 was understandable: the IPO market produced some staggering performances, while the broad Nasdaq Index posted a return of 86% in local terms over the year. Performance became less and less discriminate as the year wore on, however, to the point where it seemed that investors were not even interested in a company's business model or whet...