Nov. 25 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. consumers spent $10.3 billion on holiday purchases the day after Thanksgiving, 8.3 percent more than a year earlier, as retailers promoted toys and electronics to lure shoppers.

Consumers remained resilient and proved they were willing to spend even with oil prices rising and other economic pressures, ShopperTrak RCT Corp. said yesterday in a statement. The day after Thanksgiving, dubbed Black Friday, typically accounts for between 4.5 percent and 5 percent of all holiday sales, the company said.

Holiday sales will increase 3.6 percent this year, the Chicago-based research firm estimates, trailing a 4.8 percent gain last year. Retailers have responded to the anticipated drop by offering discounts on flat-panel TVs and diamond necklaces to lure shoppers.

``It's an extraordinary number, beyond what we anticipated,'' Bill Martin, co-founder of ShopperTrak, said in an interview. ``I think there was pent-up demand given the slow sales in October and November because of unseasonably warm weather, and people want to find value for their dollar and reacted to the specials.''

ShopperTrak estimates customer visits to stores will drop 2.5 percent this holiday season, which covers the 32 days between Thanksgiving Day and Christmas.

Sales in November and December may rise 4 percent, the slowest gain since 2002, according to the National Retail Federation in Washington. About 55 percent of shoppers said they will spend less this year than in 2006, according to a Discover Financial Services survey.

Consumers Flock

Consumers flocked to Toys ``R'' Us Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Macy's Inc. and other retailers in the pre-dawn hours of Black Friday to find bargains on Nintendo Co.'s Wii game consoles and sterling-silver jewelry.

The day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday is called Black Friday because at one time it was considered the day retailers turned profitable for the year.

At a J.C. Penney Co. store at the Westfarms mall in Farmington, Connecticut, shoppers poured down the escalator at 4 a.m. on Nov. 23 to browse racks of clothing on sale, including 60 percent discounts on men's sweaters and St. John's Bay leather coats marked down to $69 from $200.

Katrina Akins, 29, arrived at a Kohl's Corp. store in Greensboro, North Carolina, 30 minutes before it opened at 4 a.m. She planned to spend $24.99 on a four-piece bedding set, regularly priced at $99.99, and she bought a $249.99 Nintendo Wii from Toys ``R'' Us for her 10-year-old daughter.

``I need to be cutting back, but I'm just spending,'' said Akins.

Howard Davidowitz, chairman of Davidowitz & Associates Inc., a New York-based retail consulting firm, says the best deals are ``yet to come.''

``You've got to move product,'' Davidowitz said last week. ``And retailers are on a terrible sales trend, so there is no choice but to sell the inventory at what you can sell it at.''

ShopperTrak measures foot traffic in shopping centers and malls using more than 50,000 video devices.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mary Jane Credeur in Atlanta at mcredeur@bloomberg.net; Kelly Riddell in Washington at kriddell1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 25, 2007 11:18 EST