The Home Depot, Inc. : Home Depot plans spring hiring in line with 2011

(Reuters) - Home Depot (>> The Home Depot, Inc.) said it plans to recruit more than 70,000 seasonal workers for the key spring selling season, in line with its hiring last year.

Last February, the No. 1 home improvement chain had outlined plans to hire 60,000 seasonal workers for the period. But it eventually ended up hiring about 70,000, according to the company.

"Spring is always our busiest selling season, so the hiring number typically doesn't fluctuate significantly from year to year," Home Depot spokesman Stephen Holmes said.

"We're getting the word out about a month earlier (this year) so we have more time to recruit, screen and hire."

In November, Home Depot, which competes with Lowe's Cos Inc (>> Lowe's Companies, Inc.), raised its full-year outlook for the third time in six months as it benefited from steps to improve distribution and boost customer service.

Home Depot shares had closed at $43.46 on Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Ranjita Ganesan; Editing by Viraj Nair)

Stocks treated in this article : The Home Depot, Inc., Lowe's Companies, Inc.