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In this story:

• The Furby fur ball sensation
• Merchant optimism
• Spending predictions
• What stores will do well?
• Related stories and sites

(CNN) -- Shoppers by the thousands hit the nation's shopping malls and specialty stores to gobble up those perfect holiday gifts on Friday, the first day of the holiday shopping season and traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the year.

Experts estimate that billions will be spent between Thanksgiving and Christmas by those who hope to give, as well as receive, everything on their wish lists.

Toy departments, as usual, were the center of the action.

Furby is the hard-to-get item this year

This year's hot item, the wide-eyed, furry, fully animated Furby, is causing mayhem. Some stores used security guards to control the flow of traffic. Shoppers became frustrated trying to get the item that almost every child wants.

"I have two tickets, and they won't let me through," said one exasperated woman in line for Furby, a Hasbro toy sensation that many predict will easily sell out its 2 million production run this year.

After enduring the crowds, lugging around the packages and letting the kids sit in Santa's lap, many finished the day exhausted but confident that they have made a dent in the annual tradition of getting ready for the holidays.

Most merchants are optimistic about the holiday season, buoyed by the recent rise in consumer sentiment and sharp gains on Wall Street.

That's an outlook much improved from two months ago, when many feared global and economic turmoil would dampen Christmas sales.

"This summer, the consumer was cautious, with all the uncertainty going on in the country," said Britt Beemer, who runs America's Research Group, a Charleston, South Carolina- based market research firm. "But almost all of those worries are gone, and that is good news at the start of the holiday season."

Store owners, however, still have doubts and won't be satisfied with such bold predictions until they see the numbers at the end of the year. In past years, strong expectations for the holidays didn't always result in blockbuster sales.

No holiday shopping trip would be complete without a visit with ol' Saint Nick

People already say they won't go overboard in their holiday gift-buying this year. A new poll of 1,018 adults conducted by International Communications Research (ICR) of Media, Pennsylvania, showed 58 percent planned to spend about the same for the holidays as they did a year ago and 24 percent will spend less.

On the other side of the cash register, a tight labor market means merchants are struggling to find enough staffers to handle the holiday buying binge.

To get people buying this weekend, many stores are offering as much as 50 percent off, hoping that shoppers don't wait until the post-Christmas sales to do their buying.

Last year, 11 percent of people did their holiday shopping after Christmas, and 9 percent bought gifts during Thanksgiving weekend, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers, a New York-based trade group.

Discounters like Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target continue to thrive. Even when overall retail sales were weak this summer, discount stores did well, attracting value-conscious people who like the convenience of one-stop shopping.

Computer and electronics retailers also expect a strong year, thanks to rising demand for cheap computers, CD-ROMs and video games. Home furnishing stores will benefit from the booming housing market.

Youth-oriented retailers, like Abercrombie & Fitch, Limited Too and Old Navy, also should fare well. Unlike their cautious baby boomer parents, young people have high levels of disposable income that they are eager to spend.

Internet retailers, too, should have their best year to date, with more consumers going online and more merchants offering merchandise on the Web. According to the Internet research firm Jupiter Communications, online holiday sales will rise to $2.3 billion this year from $1.1 billion in 1997.

Department stores, however, continue to struggle, unable to fend off competition from discounters and specialty retailers. Already, the department stores are advertising discounts up to 40 percent off.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.