Home Depot cuts profit forecast

Home Depot, the American DIY retail chain, has cut its profit forecast for the current 2007 financial year as a result of the slump in the US housing market and the group’s recent sale of its contractor supplies unit, HD Suppply. In an announcement made in Atlanta on Tuesday, the home improvement retailer said that this year’s profit will be 15 to 18 per cent down on last year’s figure. Home Depot still intends to open 108 new stores in the course of this year.