About 166 million people were planning to shop from Thursday’s Thanksgiving holiday through this coming ‘Cyber Monday,’ according to the National Retail Federation, almost 8 million more than last year. With sporadic rain in some parts of the country, stores were less busy than usual on Black Friday. Many shoppers who opened their wallets said their purchases were strategic, not impulsive or splurges. Online sales will reach between $9 billion and $9.2 billion this Black Friday, a report from Adobe Analytics showed. The projection is slightly ahead of the company’s earlier forecast of $9.2 billion, which would represent a modest 1% increase from last year, which may pinch profit margins in the fourth quarter. Retailers are offering steep discounts. . . .
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