Shoppers failed to queue up in the cold this year to snap up Black Friday bargains — instead scouring the web for deals as they continued to fret over inflation and a wobbly US job market.

Those who did turn out early Friday seemed underwhelmed. Deontay Phillips, a 26-year-old who serves in the military, was disappointed by the discounts at a Best Buy store in Newport News, Va.

“It’s not really what I expected,” Phillips told Bloomberg News. “I probably won’t do this again.”

While overall spending is seen on par with last year, unit sales could drop as much as 2.5%, according to Circana, a consumer research firm. Translation: People are being forced to spend more to buy less stuff — particularly when it comes to go-to holiday categories like toys, apparel and electronics.

“Santa Clau

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