U.S. retailers may see record holiday Internet purchases

U.S. retailers may see record holiday Internet purchases after slashing prices on high- definition televisions and leather jackets to attract customers over the Thanksgiving weekend. Promotions by Walmart.com and Circuit City Stores Inc. may push online spending above $700 million today, a single-day best, Reston, Virginia-based ComScore Inc. estimated. Retailers are offering discounts available only online to attract people to their sites as consumers spend less in the face of higher food and fuel costs. Walmart.com is selling Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 with a game and accessories today for $399, less than the $479.66 it would normally cost.

Consumer purchases over the Internet rose 29 percent on Thanksgiving Day and 22 percent the day after, known as Black Friday, ComScore said. Spending on so-called Cyber Monday, promoted by the NRF as the first online shopping day after the weekend, probably will exceed either of those days as people return to work. Online visits on Black Friday, called that because it was considered the day that retailers traditionally turned a profit for the year, increased 10 percent from a year earlier.