Will Black Friday and Cyber Monday Be Beneficial to Retail Stocks?

When do Black Friday and Cyber Monday occur？

This weekend will be a major one for retail as buyers prepare for the hectic holiday shopping season, which begins on Thanksgiving on November 24 and continues through Black Friday on November 25, the weekend, and Cyber Monday on November 28.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday: What to Expect

Retailers have had a particularly difficult year. Earlier this year, supply chain disruptions triggered the emergence of an inflation-fueled cost-of-living crisis, which has compressed salaries and created radical adjustments in buying patterns. The more money spent on necessities like food, rent, and bills, the less money is available for discretionary items like clothing and technology. With a recession on the horizon, customers need value more than ever before. According to Statista Digital Economy Compass, worldwide eCommerce sales will decrease for the first time on record in 2022, falling 2.5% from the high levels recorded in 2021.

As a result, merchants have faced significant challenges. In addition to decreased general demand, businesses are dealing with inventory issues as a result of the quick shift in buying patterns. They have too much of what people no longer desire and not enough of what they need. This has required businesses to offer steeper discounts over a longer length of time than typical in order to move undesirable inventory. Stores such as Kohl's and Macy's began holding deals in October, while eCommerce behemoth Amazon staged its first-ever second Prime sales event during the same month. Markets anticipate that the sales activities will go far beyond Cyber Monday and into the Christmas shopping season.

Excess inventory puts pressure on costs at a time when they are already increasing due to inflation, and significant discounts reduce margins and earnings for merchants. The third-quarter results season was disastrous for most US retailers, and even the biggest and most resilient have cautioned that fourth-quarter growth would be modest at best. Last month, US retail sales increased quicker than predicted, although this was offset by consumers eating and drinking out more and higher fuel costs, while demand for products such as electronics, appliances, and other miscellaneous commodities fell.

Walmart has said that it anticipates sales to expand by just 3% in the fourth quarter, owing partly to its significant exposure to food, which is still in high demand. Amazon has warned that Christmas quarter growth would decline to its worst rate on record. Target was forced to cut its forecast after failing to sell inventories as quickly as expected, while Kohl's dropped its guide entirely.

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