Global Stock Markets

U.S. shoppers had splurged more than $1.52 billion online by Thanksgiving evening, and more bargain hunters turned up at stores this year after two weak holiday seasons as retailers opened their doors early on the eve of Black Friday.

At the start of the holiday season consumer spending rose 16.8 percent year-over-year until 5 p.m. ET on Thursday, according to Adobe Analytics, which tracked 80 percent of online transactions at the top 100 U.S. retailers.

Surging online sales and a shift away from store shopping have thinned the crowds typically seen at stores on Thanksgiving evening and the day after, Black Friday, for the past two years. But a strong labor market, rising home prices and stock markets at record highs have improved shopper appetite this year.

Crowds at stores in many locations around the country were reported to be strong, according to analysts and retail consultants monitoring shopper traffic across the U.S.

Moody’s retail analyst Charlie O’ Shea, who was in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, reported healthy traffic at local stores including consumer electronics chain Best Buy, clothing store Old Navy and retailer Kohl’s Corp.

The National Retail Federation is projecting that sales for November and December will rise 3.6 percent to 4 percent this year, versus a 4 percent increase last year. Non-store sales, which include online sales and those from kiosks, are expected to rise 11 percent-15 percent to about $140 billion.

In New Jersey, around 50 people lined up a Macy’s at the Westfield Garden State Plaza mall before it opened and around 200 people stood outside the Best Buy store, many to pick up their online orders.
In Chicago, shoppers appeared to be slightly less enthusiastic to emerge from their turkey slumber and crowds were thin along the city’s popular shopping destination, State Street.

he holiday season spanning November and December is crucial for retailers because it can account for as much as 40 percent of annual sales. Retailers try to attract shoppers with deep discounts.

Average discounts ranged between 10 and 16 percent with the best deals online on Thanksgiving evening available for computers, sporting goods, apparel and video games, according to date from Adobe.

The number of customers shopping on their smartphones surged, accounting for 46 percent of the traffic on retail websites, while traffic from desktop and laptop computers declined 11 percent and nearly 6 percent respectively, according to the data.

Europe's retailers chase sales boost with Black Friday offers

European Stock Markets

Retailers across Europe chased shoppers on “Black Friday” in a test of consumer confidence, particularly in Britain where the spending spree imported from the U.S. has become most popular.

After suffering their biggest decline in sales volumes for four-and-a-half years in October, British retailers are pinning their hopes on discounts to get shoppers, who are being squeezed by inflation and low wage rises, spending again.

In the UK the annual promotional event, which has historically focused on electrical goods, has been mainly online since 2014 when it was marred by chaos and scuffles in stores.

Research firm GlobalData forecasts UK spending during theBlack Friday period - defined as Monday Nov. 20 to Monday Nov.27 - will grow by 3.8 percent year on year to 10.1 billion pounds. But whether retailers make money from the event, which was imported to Britain from the United States by online retailer Amazon in 2010, is unclear.

Supporters argue carefully planned, targeted promotions with global suppliers allow them to achieve a sales boost, while still maintaining profit margins.

But critics say the discounts suck forward Christmas sales that retailers would otherwise have made at full price and can dampen business in subsequent weeks.

Like last year, retailers including Amazon, Dixons Carphone and market leader Tesco are stretching promotions over one to two weeks, hoping to smooth out demand and reduce pressure on supply and distribution networks.

Black Friday, the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, was so named because spending would surge and retailers would traditionally begin to turn a profit for the year, moving from the red into the black.

In Germany sales promotions on Black Friday and Cyber Monday are expected to add around 1.7 billion euros to retailers’ revenues, about on par with 2016, a survey by trade body HDE found.

It said 16 percent of German consumers took advantage of Black Friday discounts last year, spending an average of just over 170 euros each.

About 8 million France-based consumers are expected to shop from Friday to Monday, translating into expected revenue of around 945 million euros, according to a study conducted by Kantar TNS for U.S e-commerce firm eBay.

Black Friday has also been growing in Italy. This year all major retail chains are advertising discounts. Signature Italian department store La Rinascente is open until midnight on Friday and is advertising discounts of up to 50 percent.

But Spaniards, who traditionally exchange presents on Epiphany (Jan. 6), nearly two weeks after Christmas Day, have been slow to pick up on the phenomenon. Just 22 percent of Spaniards intend to make a purchase on Black Friday or Cyber Monday this year, according to a survey carried out by Metroscopia.