Discounts and sales events have remained a significant sales driver, as consumers emerge from a more than two-year stretch of high inflation. It’s unclear how much those deals will cut into Target’s and other retailers’ profit margins, and whether sales will keep improving if promotions fade away.

While Target reported strong holiday sales on Thursday, it wasn’t enough to give the stock a boost.The retail chain said sales increased 2% on a comparable basis in the last two months of 2024 from a year earlier,

Sales for the 2024 holiday shopping season turned out to be robust and better than expected, as easing inflation on merchandise drove shoppers to buy, according to the nation’s largest retail trade group.