Shoppers Hit It

Shoppers flooded stores early on Black Friday to take advantage of holiday promotions, but a selloff in the stock market on the day after Thanksgiving revealed some anxiety about the strength of consumer spending.

Reports from shopping malls across the country flooded newswires as crowds of bargain-hunters gathered outside stores in search of hot items, like flat-screen televisions, i-Pods and the ever-popular T.M.X. Elmo toys.

"It looks to be a more promotional year than any we've seen since 2002," says Richard Hastings, retail analyst with Bernard Hastings. "I expect wealthier shoppers to more than offset some weakness among lower-income shoppers."

Concern about spending constraints on lower-income shoppers reflects the economic headwinds posed by a slowing economy and a slump in the U.S. housing market. While such worries may take a toll on retail sales this year, there was little sign of lethargy on Friday.

The National Retail Federation said retailers kicked off Black Friday sales earlier than ever this year, with some welcoming eager shoppers as early as midnight. The Associated Press reported that the Best Buy(BBY) store in West Patterson, N.J., had almost 2,000 people in line for Friday's 5 a.m. opening, many of whom had lined up starting at 8 a.m. on Thursday.

"At dawn, the parking lots were 90% full," says Hastings of his early morning visit to the Carolina Place Mall in Pineville, N.C. He says people were shopping at J.C. Penney(JCP), Federated Department Stores'(FD) Macy's, Dillard's(DDS), Belk and Sears Holdings' (SHLD) Sears stores.