Americans still love spending on their homes 美國人仍然喜歡把錢花在他們的家

There's no place like home -- especially for Americans these days.

沒有一個地方像家—尤其最近對於美國人而言。

 Spenders might be shunning departments stores left and right, but they continue to spend big on homes, furniture and renovations. It's one key bright spot that's helping to hold up America's meager consumer-fueled economic growth right now.
百貨公司可能讓消費者避惟恐不及，但他們持續撒大筆鈔票在家、家具與翻修上，這是美國目前推動貧乏的消費經濟成長中的一大關鍵亮點。

Spending on building supplies and gardening equipment rose 6.4% in July compared to a year ago. Purchases of home furnishings also rose a solid 4.2% in July compared to a year ago, the Commerce Department reported Friday.
根據美國商務部星期五的報導，七月花費在建築用品、園藝設備的數量比起一年前，提高了6.4%，七月家具購買的數量比起去年，也確實提升了4.2%。


 It's another sign that America's housing market has gained momentum while retailers spiral. The home spending figures comes on the heels of Macy's announcement on Thursday that it would close 100 department stores due to weak sales.
另外一個徵兆顯示，在零售市場盤旋向下的同時，美國的房市有向上發展的趨勢，在週四梅西百貨發佈因銷售衰退而即將將100家商店關門大吉的消息之後，緊接著家庭消費的數字出爐。

Other department stores like Gap (GPS), JCPenney(JCP), Jos. A. Bank and Kohl's (KOH) have said they're closing stores. Americans are also going out to eat less, preferring to cook at home. That's sparking concerns about a "restaurant recession."
其他的百貨商店像是Gap、傑西潘尼(JCPenney)、Jos. A. Bank和柯爾百貨(Kohl's)都表示他們即將關閉一些商店。另外，美國人也越來越少外食，而偏好自己在家烹飪，餐廳產業的衰退成為一大擔憂。



Still, the good news on home spending backs up a healthy first half for America's housing market, which has struggled to recover from the Great Recession. Existing home sales were up 4.2% in the second quarter and prices for those houses rose nearly 5% too, according to the National Association of Realtors.
但仍然有好消息，美國在經濟大衰退之後不斷努力復甦的房市，上半年有家庭消費支持，根據美國房地產經紀人協會的數據，成屋銷售在第二季上升了4.2%，而房屋價格也提升了將近5%。

The improved housing outlook bodes well for Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW), both of which report their quarterly results next week. Stocks of both companies rose by double digits last year. Their gains haven't been as strong this year but they're both up.
改善的良好房市前景也預告了家得寶(Home Depot)和勞氏公司(Lowe’s)公司狀況，兩家公司皆會在下週提出季報表，去年兩者的股票皆提升至二位數，他們今年的所得雖然沒有像去年一樣強勢，但都在成長中。

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