Home Depot buys Chinese peer

BEIJING, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Home Depot Inc., the world's largest home improvement retailer, said Wednesday it is buying a Chinese peer in a deal set to close within days.

The Home Way, China's first home improvement retailer, is being sold at an undisclosed price, the U.S. company said in a news release, adding that Beijing had approved the takeover.

Home Way runs 12 stores in six cities but its potential may be huge. China's home improvement market is valued at nearly $50 billion and has been growing at a compounded annual rate of 20 percent, Home Depot said.

"This acquisition provides us with a great point of entry in one of the world's largest and fastest-growing home improvement markets," said Bob Nardelli, chief executive of Home Depot.

Home Depot entered Canada in 1994 and Mexico in 2001. Three years later Home Depot opened a business development office in China to gain consumer insights and evaluate numerous marketplace strategies.

The transaction is expected to be completed by year-end.

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