What's going on?

When shoppers went to Lowe’s, its shares went high: the DIY retailer�s stock climbed on Wednesday after it announced a better-than-expected third-quarter profit and forecast for the rest of the year.

What does this mean?

Lowe�s update wasn�t entirely stately, but it was a big improvement on arch-rival Home Depot�s worse-than-expected update on Tuesday. Sales in the home improvement chain�s stores didn�t grow by as much as hoped, meaning revenue fell short, but its raised earnings forecast kept investors from blowing the whistle.


Another member of US royalty, Beyonc�, will be pleased to hear that her favorite retailer, Target, reported expectation-beating revenue and profit on Wednesday too (tweet this). Target also raised its earnings prediction for this all-important holiday quarter, when it makes most of its sales. By opening new Disney stores within its own stores � as well as offering perks like free product shipping � it�ll hope to capitalize on customers� seasonal demand for toys.

Why should I care?

For markets: A sigh of relief.

Lowe�s and Target�s shares both rose on Wednesday: by 13% and 6% respectively. While that�s likely in part down to their positive updates, it�s also possible investors who�d been selling the day before did a U-turn. They might�ve previously been worried that retail results as a whole would disappoint, after department store chain Kohl�s reported worse-than-expected quarterly earnings and cut its profit forecast for the rest of the year. And that was true for Urban Outfitters late on Tuesday � which then cut a lonely figure on Wednesday, falling 14%.

The global picture: Retail�s weakening in the UK too.

While British consumers have been earning more and increasing their spending in general, some retailers have still struggled. Shares of Kingfisher � Europe�s answer to Lowe�s � fell 7% on Wednesday after reporting weak third-quarter sales. British drinks company Fevertree, meanwhile, warned investors of an upcoming slowdown in its sales.