"This is a business where, for the public companies to deliver the earnings they promised, if they see economic softness they manage their costs," he added.

I'd say we're seeing greater softness in the durables sector, like consumer electronics.

On the industrial side of the economy we're seeing softness, and so companies are tightening their belts a little.

He saw only softness here.

"I have seen softness in the market for books, but always the bigger books still sold - that is why the falloff in name fiction is so horrifying."

He added that he did not expect to see softness of the sort that occurred the last time the real estate market turned down, in the late 1980's.

We have seen so much softness in him; it was great to play that tough side.

"Larger markets and the major metros are seeing softness in the national advertising, and their percentages of national advertising have always been larger than the smaller markets," she said.

"Rates are falling because the bond market sees softness," said Janet Yellen, a Federal Reserve governor.

We saw softness starting to appear in the middle to late fall in various aspects of the business.