ZT:　　美国年终销售旺季开出红盘，根据上周六出炉的零售统计显示，今年美国感恩节翌日，所谓「黑色星期五」的零售额较去年同期跃增6.6％，达到114亿美元，不仅创下2007年以来最大增幅，也达到历史新高。

　　分析师表示，黑色星期五大捷，有助本周美股反弹。

　　在商店内装设客流量计算装置来评估销售状况的顾问公司ShopperTrak表示，去年美国「黑色星期五」零售额仅比2009年增加0.3％，今年则大幅攀高，归功于许多零售商延续开店时间提前至星期四晚上的做法，同时也加强冲刺线上销售。

　　这两种策略，再加上对热门商品祭出异常之高的折扣，联手冲高销售额。ShopperTrak表示，美国实体商店今年「黑色星期五」的来客量较去年同期增加5.5％。

　　IBM旗下的资统单位Coremetrics表示，美国今年「黑色星期五」的线上销售额较去年同期成长24.3％，感恩节当天的线上销售额更是较去年同期成长39.3％，凸显出在这个传统上是美国零售商全年最重要的营业时段中，网路销售的地位益趋重要。

　　今年美国消费者用行动装置来比价及购物的情形都明显增加。Coremetrics分析说，今年线上销售中约9.8％系来自于行动装置，远高于去年的3.2％。

　　根据零售业指出，Leapfrog的儿童平板电脑LeapPad、亚马逊的Kindle Fire，与Activison的电玩软体决胜时刻都是最热销的产品。此外，在网上询价比较的产品中，最热门的是5英寸平面电视，其次是索尼的 PlayStation3与微软的Xbox游戏机。

　　线上销售额较去年同期的成长幅度，以百货公司的59％居冠，其次是家具家饰的48.8％，成衣服饰的47.7％，美容保健用品的34.3％。

　　不过ShopperTrak表示，消费者今年仍然非常价值取向，意味「黑色星期五」的强劲消费动能是否能维持整个年终假期季节，即持续到圣诞节，还有待观察。

Earlier than ever store openings and steep discounts helped retailers notch record sales this Black Friday weekend, according to early reports.

Total spending over the four-day weekend following Thanksgiving reached a record $52.4 billion, up 16% from $45 billion last year, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation released Sunday.

A record 226 million consumers shopped in stores and online between Thursday and Sunday, up from 212 million last year. Individual shoppers spent more too, the NRF said. The average holiday shopper shelled out $398.62, up from $365.34 in 2010.

Earlier openings at big-box retailers like Wal-Mart, Toys R Us and Target's was one factor boosting sales -- particularly among men and young adults, according to the early tally. Nearly one-quarter of Black Friday shoppers were at stores by midnight on Black Friday, up from only 9.5% in 2010, the NRF said.

"I would say that means we will have to be on the look-out for a new tradition and that is more and more stores will be opening on Thanksgiving night next year," Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at the NPD Group, said in a statement.

In a separate survey released Saturday, ShopperTrak said retail sales on Black Friday alone climbed 6.6% this year to an estimated $11.4 billion.

Online retailers also played a bigger role this year with a slew of deep discounts and promotions well before Cyber Monday. Online sales were up 39.3% on Thanksgiving Day and 24.3% on Black Friday compared to the same days last year, according to IBM's Coremetrics, which tracks real-time data from 500 retailers in the apparel, department store, health and beauty and home goods categories.

Cyber Monday could also notch a new record, according to online tracking firm ComScore. Online sales for 2011 are projected to hit $1.2 billion, up from $1 billion last year, Andrew Lipsman, ComScore's industry analyst, said.

While Black Friday marks the unofficial start of the holiday season, it is still too early to say whether this consumer spending momentum will continue until Christmas, noted NRF spokeswoman Ellen Davis.

"Clearly people came out in droves and that's good news, there's no question -- but it's only part of the story" said Sherif Mityas, partner in the retail practice of A.T. Kearney, a New York-based consulting firm. "We still have more than a few weeks to Christmas and if everyone is done shopping, the holiday will be a failure."

Overall, the NRF is still forecasting overall holiday retail sales to increase a modest 2.8% during the months of November and December to $465.6 billion.