CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- U.S.retailers posted sizable "Black Friday" gains vs. 2010's day-after-Thanksgiving sales results, according to data released Saturday.
Store sales, according to Chicago-based ShopperTrak, rose 7%, as shoppers spent $11.4 billion, up nearly $1 billion from a year ago, by the Associated Press's calculations.
Online sales on Black Friday jumped 24.3%, which tracks sales at 500 top Web retailers. Numerous chain retailers moved store-opening times ahead from previous years' predawn "doorbusters" to midnight, hoping to lure post-Thanksgiving-dinner shoppers, while others for the first time featured opening hours on Thanksgiving Day itself.
The holiday shopping season that traditionally kicks off on Black Friday -- the biggest day of the year for retailers -- is closely watched by investors as consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of the U.S. economy.
The National Retail Federation, an industry trade group, forecast a 2.8 percent increase in sales for the November-to-December holiday season, down from the 5.2 percent increase in 2010.
Despite the strong start, many remain skeptical if retailers will be able to maintain the sales momentum seen this weekend.
"One swallow does not a holiday season make. After the deepest recession in decades, the solid Black Friday weekend is welcome news, but we're only in the second quarter of a long playoff game," Johnson said.