Whatever the reason, business spending is a powerful force.

Economists note that neither low interest rates nor last year's tax cuts did much to stimulate business spending.

Just one of the nation's economic pillars, business spending for machinery and equipment, particularly computers, has been strong.

As I've already indicated, the destruction isn't big compared with the economy, but rebuilding will generate at least some increase in business spending.

One of the best items in the report, several economists said, was the surge in business spending.

Almost all business surveys point to strong growth in business spending and investment.

Companies also stepped up their investment in new equipment, with business spending growing by 8.9 percent - almost double the rate of the previous quarter.

This grew to 83% in 1932, when business spending dropped.

After Sept. 11 both consumer and business spending came to an abrupt halt.

In a separate report, the Government predicted that business spending would rise by 7.3 percent next year, more than triple this year's rate.