Strong start on Wall Street; Home Depot leads Dow

Published: 02:47:57 PM, Tue 26 February 2013 UTC

NEW YORK (AP) — Strong earnings reports from Home Depot and Macy's are helping to lift stock indexes in early trading on Wall Street.

Home Depot, the biggest home improvement store chain in the country, jumped 4 percent after reporting that its income jumped 32 percent in the latest quarter thanks to strong U.S. sales and the cleanup that followed Superstorm Sandy. Macy's results also beat analysts' forecasts.

Shortly after the opening bell Tuesday the Dow Jones industrial average was up 78 points at 13,864. The Dow had its worst fall in three months the day before after closely contested elections in Italy suggested the country might be headed for political gridlock, undermining the euro.

The Standard & Poor's 500 was up eight points at 1,496. The Nasdaq rose 10 points to 3,125.

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