IT analyst house Gartner Inc has slashed its global tech spending forecast for next year to growth of just 2.3 per cent. The research outfit was forced to significantly downgrade its previous 5.8 per cent growth prediction for 2009 because of the financial storm currently thundering across the world’s economy markets. IT spending will hit $3.5tr next year, said Gartner yesterday. The firm also warned that businesses would cut back hardware, software, telecoms and services budgets as the credit crisis deepens. “Developed economies, especially the United States and Western Europe, will be the worst affected, but emerging regions will not be immune,” said Gartner’s senior veep and head of research Peter Sondergaard. However, the analyst firm remains optimistic about its full year outlook for 2008, which it doesn’t think will change dramatically despite the fourth quarter taking a hammering from the ongoing economic turmoil.