Whether they jostled through brick-and-mortar stores or toggled between tabs and virtual carts, holiday shoppers were eager to participate in Black Friday this year. Both in-store and online retail sales increased year-over-year unadjusted for inflation, according to Mastercard’s SpendingPulse insights, which noted that apparel, jewelry and restaurant categories saw considerable spikes. Most shoppers did their browsing and buying on their phones, with mobile purchases accounting for $5.3 billion in sales. Story continuesE-commerce platform Shopify also reported record sales totaling more than $4 billion worldwide, 22% higher than last year. As holiday shopping ramps up ahead of Christmas, analysts predict a busy time for retailers over the next few weeks.

Source: CNN November 26, 2023 10:33 UTC