Toy discounts hit record high with more expected

Deep discounts are set to define this holiday shopping season as retailers whack through excess inventory and face inflation-weakened consumer demand.

By the numbers: Price drops for toys have hit a record high, peaking at 30% off the listed price in the first three weeks of November, fresh data from Adobe Analytics shows. That's up from 19% last year.

• "Strong discounts" have already hit electronics (22%), computers (14%), appliances (13%) and televisions (13%), Adobe Analytics finds, up from 8%, 10%, 4% and 11% last year.
• Apparel, sporting goods and furniture prices have already fallen 12%, 8% and 4%, respectively, compared to 13%, 6% and 2% overall last year.

Best days to shop for deals

According to Adobe: Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 24) will be the best day to shop online for electronics.

• Black Friday (Nov. 25) will have the best deals for TVs.
• Saturday (Nov. 26) will have the biggest discounts for toys
• Sunday (Nov. 27) will see the best deals for apparel and sporting goods.
• Cyber Monday (Nov. 28) will see computer and furniture cuts at their sharpest.
• Dec. 1. will see appliances at top discounts.

Worth noting: The ongoing economic downturn is prompting more shoppers to look for online discount codes too, and more hackers are looking to trick these consumers with phony deals, threat analysts tell Axios’ Sam Sabin.

• Monitor bank statements, double-check sender emails and website URLs, and be suspicious of any deals that seem too good to be true.
• "If it feels suspicious, it probably is suspicious," Ashley Allocca, a threat analyst at cyber intelligence firm Flashpoint, tells Sam.

Go deeper:

• Stores offer steep holiday sales as inventory piles up
• Thanksgiving shopping online to decline for first time since 2015
• Say goodbye to the traditional holiday shopping season