Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- -- Macy’s Inc., the second-biggest U.S. department-store chain, will open most of its stores for the first time at midnight for Black Friday shopping sales.

Locations across the U.S. will open at 12 a.m. on Friday Nov. 25, the New York-based company said today in a statement. Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving and the traditional beginning of holiday shopping.

Macy’s last month announced plans to increase hiring of mostly part-time workers by 4 percent for the holiday season to match sales growth in stores and online. Last week, Target Corp. also said it will open its doors at midnight on Black Friday.

Total U.S retail sales may rise 3 percent in November and December, compared with 4.1 percent a year earlier, according to a report released this month by ShopperTrak, a Chicago-based consulting firm. Sales dropped 1.3 percent in 2009.

Sears Holdings Corp. is the biggest U.S. department-store company by sales.

--Editors: Cecile Daurat, James Callan

To contact the reporter on this story: James Callan at jcallan2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Robin Ajello at rajello@bloomberg.net