Negative development

For the first quarter of 2007 Lowe's announced a sales increase of 2.1 per cent over the same period last year to a total of US $ 12.1 bn (€ 9.0 bn). However, sales were 6.3 per cent down like-for-like. According to information from the company, net profit for this period experienced a 12.1 per cent decline to US $ 739 mio (€ 550 mio). Lowe's CEO Robert Niblock mentions not only the difficult property market as one reason for this decline, but also the post-hurricane reconstruction measures that can hardly be included in a comparison, as well as the significant fall in the price of timber and plywood. At the end of the quarter Lowe's had 1 400 DIY stores in operation in the USA, following a further 15 new openings