Home Depot sales surge over 30%

A huge sales surprise at Home Depot. The biggest U.S. home improvement chain reported Tuesday that quarterly same-store sales jumped 31%. Wall Street had been expecting sales growth would slow now that more Americans are inoculated but demand proved to be prolonged. Earnings also topped estimates.

Several factors converged to produce a banner quarter. Builders and contractors with a backlog of projects put on hold during the health crisis rushed back to its stores. Homebuilding jumped to a 15-year high in March. And skyrocketing prices for lumber are expected to have helped boost sales, too.

On the consumer side, analysts said the fresh round of government stimulus fueled demand. But they don’t expect an encore of this performance, for consumers may spend on other things such as travel as the economy reopens.

Archrival Lowe's reports its results on Wednesday.