1.   Analysts said the decline stemmed from investors cashing in while the stock price was high rather than concern about future earnings.

2.   H.D. Hoover, the University of Iowa psychometrician who develops the test, wondered if the decline might stem partly from less phonics instruction.

3.   The decline mostly stems from its ailing restaurant division, which includes the Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut chains.

4.   The decline stemmed from a drop in the demand for printed circuit boards and a glut of inventory throughout the computer industry.

5.   The decline stems from an increase in costs of providing technical assistance to other Asian automakers, the Nihon Keizai newspaper said.

6.   The declines stemmed from attacks on Southeast Asia currencies, which forced governments in the region to raise interest rates.

7.   The decline stemmed from a strike by municipal workers in Vancouver, British Columbia, which magnified the overall drop in residential permits.

8.   The decline stems from a slowdown in the U.S. electronics industry.

9.   The early decline stemmed from concern among some investors that prices are higher than justified by the economic and business backdrop.

10.   The earnings decline stemmed from costs associated with business expansion and the development of new products and services.