Black Friday frenzy generates record $9.1 billion in online sales - report

According to Adobe, Black Friday online sales exceeded $9 billion this year to set a new record. U.S. Consumers spent $9.12 billion shopping online, an increase of 2.3% year-over-year (YoY).

A strong online shopping activity was led by robust demand for electronics, toys, and exercise equipment, Adobe stated. Consumers were also interested in Buy Now Pay Later services as payments increased by 78% compared to the previous week.

As far as most popular single items are concerned, consumers were mostly looking for gaming consoles, drones, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) Macbooks, Dyson products, as well as popular toys.

The record Black Friday weekend comes after a very strong day of Thanksgiving shopping, which saw sales rise 2.9% YoY to $5.29 billion.

Adobe expects shopping activity to remain strong with Cyber Monday expected to generate $11.2 billion in sales.

"We would characterize early Black Friday data as slightly positive for the sector, and we continue to expect 4Q to be a little more backend loaded than last year due to prior year inventory issues. Some positives in the data for select sectors may include increase in exercise equipment sales since October (Peloton) and use of financing," Bank of America analyst Justin Post commented on the early data.

Morgan Stanley analyst Alex Straton added:

"Black Friday traffic appeared mixed, but discounting activity slightly lower-than-expected. Softlines retailers saw higher traffic & increased discounting y/y, while both traffic & discounting were similar y/y for Hardlines. Looking ahead, we see further margin risk should consumers hold out on spending & force retailers to offer deeper discounts."

By Senad Karaahmetovic

You May Also Be Interested In

• 3 internet stocks to own for Q1 earnings season
• UK CMA Seeks Views on Microsoft and Amazon's AI Partnerships - Bloomberg
• BofA says there is a continued strength in buybacks