Wal-Mart steps up competition for holiday shopping

NEW YORK — As more stores push for Thanksgiving shoppers, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is stepping up its game for the official kickoff to the holiday shopping season.

The world's largest retailer said Tuesday that it will start to offer its holiday blockbuster deals at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving at its stores, two hours earlier than last year. It will stagger holiday deals throughout the night and into "Black Friday" — the day that's traditionally the start of the holiday shopping season.

The company will increase its stock of TVs by 65 percent and double the number of tablets for sale that weekend, while promising sharper discounts. It's also bulking up the list of guaranteed popular items that it will sell in designated sections of its store to 21, from just three last year.