Many shoppers expect to hit the stores on Black Friday but many got an early start Thursday night, taking advantage of deals at places like Wal-Mart and Target.
The National Retail Federation has estimated that
overall sales in November and December will rise 4.1 percent this year to $586
billion.
About 17 percent of shoppers were expected to take
advantage of Thanksgiving hours, according to the International Council of
Shopping Centers-Goldman Sachs survey. Last year, that figure was 16 percent.
For Black Friday, traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year, 33
percent of the people surveyed said they intended to shop, slightly down from
34 percent in 2011.
