In the US, shopping on ‘Black Friday’ is almost as traditional as turkey and yams on Thanksgiving.  But this time around, the critical day is being scrutinized for signs of a consumer pulse.  And, in this fragile economic state, the oh-so-fragile consumer is struggling under the weight of big mortgages, car payments, credit card debt, and record unemployment. 

That sets the stage for some serious bargain-hunting, though early data is just starting to emerge.  Actually, early signs suggest that games and TVs might survive the season, at least according to November data from MasterCard SpendingPulse.  More specifically, US consumers spent 6.1 percent more on ‘electronics’ during the first two weeks of November, as compared to the same period in 2008.  The category includes games, and the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 helped enormously.  But a huge push on televisions also bumped the figure.

Closer to the music industry, sales of iPhones, iPods, and competing devices are more critical parts of the electronics equation.  Earlier this year, iPod sales started declining, and that could spell problems for paid downloads over the holidays.  Typically, those unwrapping new iPods grab a few iTunes Store downloads to start the fun.  During the first half of this year, sales of iTunes songs improved significantly, though more recent months suggest a return to a multi-year plateau.

And CDs?  A canvass of pricing at Wal-Mart shows plenty of sub-$10 titles, even on major acts like Miley Cyrus, Kiss, Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, and Michael Jackson, whose double-disc This Is It is retailing for $9.97.  Whether that will stir buying remains unclear, though the days of $16.98 discs are long gone, at least for retailers that want to stay alive.