Former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Thursday he would break from the Republican Party to endorse President Barack Obama for a second term.

Powell, who still considered himself as a Republican, told CBS News that he voted for Obama in 2008 and planned to "stick with him in 2012" on Election Day next month.

Powell praised Obama for his handling of the economy, stressing that Obama had inherited "one of the worst recessions we had seen in recent times, close to depression" after taking office in January 2009.

"Housing is now starting to pick up after four years, it's starting to pick up. Consumer confidence is rising. So I think generally we've come out of the dive and we are starting to gain altitude," said Powell, while admitting many problems were "still out there."

Powell also praised Obama's performance on foreign policy, particularly his decision to withdraw troops from Iraq, his plan for leaving Afghanistan, and not to "get us into any new war."

"So I think we ought to keep on the track that we're on," said Powell.

Speaking of Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee, Powell said he respected him but insisted Romney had offered a " moving target" which would be hard to fix on several important issues. He said Romney provided a set of views on foreign policy different from what he had earlier on campaign trail during the third and final presidential debate held Monday night.

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