Black Friday spending up 7.5% on last year

US consumers spent a record US$9.8 billion online during Black Friday, with the winning streak expected to continue into Cyber Monday, according to research by Adobe Analytics.

Almost US$10 billion was generated by online sales across America during Black Friday, a leap of 7.5% on last year, according to a report by Adobe Analytics.

Though whether this points towards economic recovery, or the exact opposite, is not so clear cut.

While Black Friday sales were up year-on-year, analysts are concerned that the frenzied bargain-hunting may reflect the hit taken to many consumer pockets by the rising cost of inflation.

Sales are expected to tail off after Cyber Monday, which could end up being bad news for retailers in terms of their fourth quarter results.

“We’ve seen a very strategic consumer emerge over the past year where they’re really trying to take advantage of these marquee days, so that they can maximize on discounts,” said Vivek Pandya, a lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights.

Of the total US$9.8 billion sales, US$5.3 billion of these came from mobile shopping.

Adobe analysts expect spending to continue through Cyber Monday when they anticipate a further record US$12 billion will be spent by online shoppers stocking up for Christmas.

“We do expect growth to weaken because those discounts will weaken and they are dictating a lot in terms of buyer behaviour this season,” said Pandya.

However, those drinks brands that operate an online-only model are likely to see their figures spike, and companies such as Naked Wines, which reported earlier this month that “current trading in the US has fallen well behind, both in terms of sales and margin” with customer attrition “at historically low levels”, could experience a turnaround in their fate.