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Improved housing market boosts Home Depot's Q3
Atlanta -- An improved housing market boosted Home Depot in its latest quarter, as the home improvement retailer reported Tuesday that net income for the third quarter rose to $947 million from $934 million in the year-ago period.
Revenue climbed 4% to $18.13 billion, edging Wall Street’s estimated $17.92 billion in revenue. Same-store sales rose 4.3% in the U.S. and 4.2% overall.
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Consumers increasingly optimistic about economy
New York -- Experian Marketing Services said Monday that its Consumer Expectation Index shows an increasing optimism about the economy. According to the CEI, U.S. consumers’ forward-looking view of the economy is at its highest level since the onset of the recession. During the first half of 2012, the average CEI figure was 92.7, which is above the index’s average of the first six months for each year dating back to 2008. The 2012 figure measured eight points above those for the first half of 2008 and one point over those for the first half of 2011.