U.S. Stock Futures Edge Lower as Tech Earnings and Fed Decision Shape Market Sentiment 
Pentagon and Anthropic Clash Over AI Safeguards in National Security Use 
Apple Faces Margin Pressure as Memory Chip Prices Surge Amid AI Boom 
Thailand Moves to Regulate Gold Trading to Curb Baht Strength and Support Economic Growth 
MAS Holds Monetary Policy Steady as Strong Growth Raises Inflation Risks 
U.S. and El Salvador Sign Landmark Critical Minerals Agreement to Boost Investment and Trade 
Toyota Retains Global Auto Sales Crown in 2025 With Record 11.3 Million Vehicles Sold 
U.S. Dollar Slides for Second Week as Tariff Threats and Iran Tensions Shake Markets 
Gold Prices Pull Back After Record Highs as January Rally Remains Strong 
Trump Threatens Aircraft Tariffs as U.S.-Canada Jet Certification Dispute Escalates 
Advantest Shares Hit Record High on Strong AI-Driven Earnings and Nvidia Demand 
Apple Earnings Beat Expectations as iPhone Sales Surge to Four-Year High 
Microsoft AI Spending Surge Sparks Investor Jitters Despite Solid Azure Growth 
Samsung Electronics Posts Record Q4 2025 Profit as AI Chip Demand Soars 
Asian Currencies Trade Flat as Dollar Retreats After Fed Decision 
South Korea Industry Minister Heads to Washington Amid U.S. Tariff Hike Concerns 
Indonesia Stocks Face Fragile Sentiment After MSCI Warning and Market Rout 
The Home Depot announced late last week that it had appointed Ted Decker as its new chief executive officer. He will be replacing Craig Menear, who has been the company’s chief for more than seven years.
Decker will take over and officially begin his work as the CEO on March 1. On the other hand, 64-year-old Menear will not be retiring but will continue to serve The Home Depot as chairman of the board. The outgoing chief has been working for the company for over 20 years and started serving as CEO in late 2014.
According to CNBC, while many companies have suffered and shuttered due to the pandemic, the opposite happened to The Home Depot as it has seen substantial growth instead. This happened because while people were in lockdown and mostly staying in their homes, many have invested in their homes for improvements and others even moved to bigger spaces.
This led homeowners to buy more items from the home improvement retail firm. The pandemic caused a strong housing market in the U.S., and The Home Depot apparently benefited from this.
It was reported that the growth carried on until the most recent fiscal quarter as some homeowners even signed up home design professionals than engage in do-it-yourself home projects. Then again, it has yet to be seen if the company will be able to keep strong sales amid the current inflation.
In any case, Decker has been with The Home Depot a little bit longer than Menear. He is a company veteran who joined the company 22 years ago and slowly rose in ranks since being recruited in 2000. Prior to his new assignment, he was a chief merchant and executive vice president of merchandising before being promoted as president and COO in October 2020.
“As a 22-year associate of The Home Depot, Ted has nurtured our culture by living our values and demonstrating servant leadership throughout his career,” Menear said in a press release for Decker’s promotion. “Ted has grown with the company by taking on expanded roles of leadership from his time in Strategic Business Development, Finance and Merchandising to leading our day-to-day interconnected operations in his role as President and COO, and his ability to blend the art and science of retail is exactly what is needed in the next phase of growth for The Home Depot.”
Finally, Menear added he has great confidence that the new CEO will guide and lead the company to new heights.
