SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Cisco Systems Inc.'s second-quarter profit matched Wall Street's subdued expectations, but shares of the world's largest Internet networking supplier plunged on signs that economic jitters will continue to hurt sales growth.

The San Jose-based company's guidance of 10 percent sales growth in the third fiscal quarter fell below the 15 percent projection by Wall Street analysts.

The forecast disappointed investors, who viewed it as a sign technology spending will continue to weaken as companies gird for a possible recession in the U.S.

Cisco executives acknowledged many companies are being cautious about investing in new Internet equipment, but they predicted growth will soon pick up again, helped by surging demand in emerging markets.

"It's important to keep in perspective that even in these economic times, we're seeing solid growth on a year-over-year basis," said Dennis Powell, Cisco's chief financial officer.

Powell said Cisco experienced sudden slowdowns in January in several markets in the U.S. and in European Internet service providers. Uncertainty about how long the slump will continue prompted the

If you are visiting a website like TradingMarkets, then there's a pretty good chance that you have already decided that trading stocks (or forex or options or exchange-traded funds...) is for you. But even those who have decided to start down this road often do not realize just how much stock trading has changed -- even over the last decade.

The good news is that this means that there are now more reasons than ever for you -- once you've fully funded your 401(k) or IRA, and built up your family's rainy day fund -- to begin trading. And because more traders than ever are looking to the equity markets as the markets they want to trade, it seems like a good idea to look at some of the specific reasons why you should trade stocks.

Commissions are Lower Than Ever

Compare the average per trade stock commissions of today with those from twenty or even ten years ago. The rise of the discount brokerage, followed by the rise of the online discount brokerage, has done as much as anything to bring stock trading to the masses.

Lower commissions are not just a boon for investors and traders in general. The lower cost of doing the business of trading stocks actually makes certain trading strategies possible for the average trader. Some trading techniques, including many shorter-term trading strategies, require traders to make several trades