Lowe's CEO Niblock Echoes Home Depot Outlook

New York, NY, Sept. 5, 2008--Echoing concerns from his main rival, Lowe's CEO Robert Niblock warned that the housing market remains difficult, given high inventory of unsold homes, tight credit and rising unemployment.

At a Goldman Sachs retail conference, Niblock warned that housing prices are likely to keep falling and said 90 percent of Lowe's stores operated in markets with declining housing prices during the second quarter.

"We expect that to probably continue to the middle of next year from a housing price decline standpoint," Niblock said.

Niblock also warned that high food and fuel prices are crimping consumer discretionary spending while the labor market remains soft.

"All those factors continue to put pressure on home improvement consumers and their disposable income that they have to spend on our products," Niblock said.

Niblock said the company's second-quarter results reflected this difficult environment. Last month, Lowe's said second-quarter profit declined 8 percent.

However, Niblock said Lowe's is planning to open 120 stores during the fiscal year.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Home Depot CEO Frank Blake at the conference warned the housing market will likely remain pressured "certainly through the rest of this year and probably into the beginning part 2009."