Amazon(AMZN  ), Best Buy(BBY  ), Walmart(WMT  ), and Target(TGT  ) released Black Friday deals early to be ahead of the competition.

The combination of a strong economy, a healthy stock market, and a low employment rate are the right combination for huge numbers of shoppers and sales during this Black Friday and holiday shopping season.

Friday after Thanksgiving has always been used as an indicator of how much consumers will spend. From the market close on Tuesday to the end of Friday on Thanksgiving week, the S&P 500 (SPY  ) has made gains in 58 out of the past 69 years. The National Retail Federation expects sales to increase between 3.8% and 4.2% during the holiday shopping season. JP Morgan analyst expects sales to be up 4.9%, which is stronger than last year's sale gain of 1.9%.

Scott Redler of T3Live. com said it's very likely there will be a Santa rally taking the market higher into the end of December. "A lot of analysts have a target of 3,200 for this year, but we were a little ahead of ourselves. A week of digestion is welcome. Traders are looking to make sure the market holds 3,070 to 3,090 to give more confidence that the Santa rally could bring it to 3,200 by year-end. The question is can the market hold these levels," Redler said.

Retail sales are important because consumers drive two-thirds of the economy. Consumers are expected to spend an average of $1,048 during this holiday season.

"Consumers are in good financial shape and willing to spend a little more on gifts for the special people in their lives this holiday season," National Retail Federation President and CEO Matthew Shay said. "Retailers are fully prepared to meet the needs of holiday shoppers looking for that perfect mix of sales, quality and selection."