How much of its output is the U.S. devoting to investment in information technology, compared to other advanced nations?

• The U.S. boosted its outlays from 4.08 percent of gross domestic product in 1996 to 4.53 percent in 1997, according to the European Information Technology Observatory's latest annual assessment.

• That compares to 2.61 percent of its GDP by Japan, and 2.34 percent by Western Europe.

• Among the major European nations, only Britain and Sweden devoted more than 3 percent of their GDP to information technology in 1997.

• U.S. businesses own 105 computers for every 100 workers -- nearly twice the average level of 55 PCs for every 100 Western European white-collar workers and more than four times Japan's count of 24.

Source: Gene Koretz, "Info Tech: Who's Spending What," Business Week, May 3, 1999.