41.   Germany languished due to the high costs of unification and a global downturn in demand for its exports.

42.   Hitachi is among the Japanese electronics makers that have been hit hard by the global downturn.

43.   However, the officials issued a joint statement expressing their commitment to promoting economic growth to ward off a global downturn.

44.   In Japan, stocks finished lower for a fifth consecutive session on worries over corporate earnings in the global economic downturn.

45.   Industry and unions are warning that unless the bank takes further action to combat the effects of the global downturn, the manufacturing sector could slip into outright recession.

46.   INSEE said the slowdown was due to the global downturn, with recessions in the United States, Germany and Japan.

47.   Its Japanese competitors have also been hard hit by the global downturn in sales of personal computers, video-game consoles and the chips that power them.

48.   Japanese electronics makers have been seriously hurt by the global downturn and by rival manufacturers in China and other parts of Asia that have cheaper production costs.

49.   Like its Japanese competitors, Fujitsu has been hard hit by the global downturn in sales of memory chips and other electronics components.

50.   Like other Japanese electronics companies, NEC has suffered from the global downturn and competition from Asian rivals.