When U.S. Department of Energy analysts told you more than a month ago that gasoline prices would peak at about $4 a gallon around Memorial Day, we told you they were wrong. Gas prices, we said, were destined to head much, much higher.

The Home Depot Inc. (HD) reported a 66% decline in first-quarter net earnings, the result of what Chief Executive Officer Francis Blake called “worsened” housing and home improvement markets.

You can bet there will be a lot of discussion about interest rates this week, thanks to the release of the producer price index (PPI) report tomorrow (Tuesday) and the U.S. Federal Reserve meeting minutes on Wednesday.

Exxon Mobil’s Profit Geyser; General Motors Cleans Up Its Act; Home Depot Boards Up 15 Stores; New $60 Billion City in U.A.E. Planned; Wheat Hits Five-Month Low; Brit Firm’s Silicone Valley Buy; Burger King’s “Whopper” Quarter; PharmaNet Plunges on Canceled Contracts.

“Sales of new homes plunge to lowest level in 16½ years,” reports the Commerce Department, throwing another log of bad news onto the burning housing market. And by the time you read this, we’re sure another story of the weak housing market will hit the newswire. It’s what makes the current strength in shares of Home Depot so interesting.