PENSACOLA - Pre-dawn openings, and deep discounts created long lines of "black friday" shoppers at many local stores this morning.

Despite reports of low consumer confidence, and predictions of less spending this season many of the shoppers we found were raring to go.

It was the day shoppers had bargains on the brain.

At Target on Bayou blvd 700 people stood in line for hours to get their hands on hot ticket items, like 26-inch flat-screen hdtv's selling for $299.

Black friday has traditionally been one of the busiest and most frantic shopping days of the year but with Christmas sales down in 2007 and the economy looking like a leftover fruitcake, many people are wondering if black friday can live up to past performances.

But some shoppers are choosing to ignore the reality of a sluggish economy and splurge on gift giving.

And that's exactly what retailers are hoping for this season, holding out hope that shoppers like will take them out of the red.

This year Target was well stocked - with front page items listed in their sales catalog still available at 10 a.m. this morning.

Experts believe black friday will remain one of the season's biggest selling days, even as shoppers remain deliberate in their spending.

Black Friday Spending