Gift buys done for a third of shoppers

Nearly one third of U.S. shoppers are already done with most of their holiday shopping, a survey showed Monday, signaling that retailers need to offer bigger deals to win sales in the weeks before Christmas.

The findings underscore the fragility of the U.S. recovery, since consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of the nation's economy.

About 32 percent of people surveyed by America's Research Group said they finished most of their Christmas shopping in November. Last month included Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving when stores pulled out all the stops on discounts to woo shoppers.

More than 6 percent completed most of their holiday shopping in the first weekend of December.

"There is very little retailers can do unless they really have some incredible sales that force that consumer to reconsider if they want . . . to make an extra purchase now," said America's Research Group president Britt Beemer.

About 28 percent of people surveyed said they plan to take a break from shopping, now that the Black Friday weekend is behind them.

"Many, many consumers, when they got those early bird specials on Black Friday, decided that that was going to be the big purchase for their family," Beemer said, adding that many shoppers spent more than they planned on Black Friday.

Sales during the Black Friday weekend soared to $52.4 billion, according to the National Retail Federation, which predicts sales for the full season will be up 2.8 percent.