Record-breaking online sales and mobile traffic highlight successful Black Friday

  • Online sales reached $70.9 billion globally, an 8% increase from Black Friday last year
  • In the U.S., online sales increased 9% to $16.4 billion globally
  • Footwear, health and beauty, skincare, and sporting goods were high-performing categories
  • Shopify reported a 22% year-over-year increase in global sales to a record $4.1 billion
  • Record $5.6 billion spent online on Thanksgiving Day, up 5.5% year over year
  • Salesforce projects a 1% increase in Cyber Week online sales this year and a 4% increase globally
  • 61% of shoppers’ Black Friday budgets will be spent online this year, a two-percentage point increase over last year
  • 79% of digital visits to websites this year came from mobile phones, an all-time high in mobile traffic

Early data from Salesforce reveals that Black Friday online sales reached $70.9 billion globally, marking an 8% increase from the previous year. In the U.S., online sales saw a 9% increase, totaling $16.4 billion. High-performing categories included footwear, health and beauty, skincare, and sporting goods. Shopify also reported a significant year-over-year increase in global sales, reaching a record $4.1 billion. Additionally, Thanksgiving Day saw a record-breaking $5.6 billion spent online, up 5.5% from last year. Looking ahead, Salesforce projects a 1% increase in Cyber Week online sales and a 4% increase globally. The shift towards online shopping is evident, with 61% of shoppers’ Black Friday budgets being spent online, and mobile traffic reaching an all-time high of 79% of digital visits to websites.

Factuality Level: 7
Factuality Justification: The article provides data from reputable sources such as Salesforce and Adobe to support its claims about online sales during Black Friday. However, it does not provide information about brick-and-mortar sales or the overall performance of big retailers, which could provide a more comprehensive picture of the holiday shopping season. Additionally, the article includes some irrelevant information about text-to-speech technology and shopping on mobile phones.
Noise Level: 3
Noise Justification: The article provides data on online sales during Black Friday and the holiday shopping season. It mentions the increase in online sales compared to last year and highlights high-performing categories. However, it lacks analysis or insights into the implications of these sales figures and does not provide any actionable information for readers.
Financial Relevance: Yes
Financial Markets Impacted: The article provides information on online sales data during the Black Friday shopping season, which can impact e-commerce companies and retailers.
Presence Of Extreme Event: No
Nature Of Extreme Event: No
Impact Rating Of The Extreme Event: No
Rating Justification: The article discusses online sales data during the Black Friday shopping season, which is relevant to financial markets and companies. However, there is no mention of any extreme events.
Public Companies: Salesforce (CRM), Shopify (SHOP), Best Buy (BBY), Target (TGT), Nordstrom (JWN), Kohl’s (KSS)
Key People: Salesforce spokesperson (Unknown)


Reported publicly: www.marketwatch.com