Sales picked up momentum after a slow start to the holiday season, bringing the gain for all of 2016 to 3.3%.
The number of shoppers over the four-day weekend hit a record 154 million but steep discounts put a dent in the average spend.
The Labor Department exceeded its authority in raising the minimum salary level for overtime eligibility, a Texas judge rules.
The Obama administration says its new overtime rule will strengthen the middle class but a business group calls it a "career killer."
The National Retail Federation said that holiday sales should increase 3.7%, to $630.5 billion, this year, a deceleration from 2014's growth.
Finance chiefs at retail companies forecast 3.9% sales growth this year, driven by lower fuel prices and unemployment.
Both eBay and Wal-Mat cut their sales forecasts for their current fiscal year, in part blaming a stronger U.S. dollar.
