(SyndicateMyNews) - Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) lowered its earnings outlook on Friday while rival Circuit City Stores (NYSE: CC) struggles to find buyer. Overall, electronic retailers are facing a tougher year ahead.

Best Buy, the nation's leading electronics retailer, said Friday that its full-year profit outlook would be lower, forecasting $2.50 per share over its previous $2.70 per share estimate. Same store sales for December also declined, down 6.5 percent.

But even though December same-stores were sharply lower, for the month ended January 3rd sales rose 4 percent compared to the same period last year, which was in line with expectations.

Rival Circuit City, which filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November, was struggling to find a buyer for the consumer electronics chain.

Circuit City said it was in talks with two sources for possible financing or acquisition. Monday, Circuit City filed for permission with the bankruptcy court to seek a sale of its operations as a going concern, implying that the consumer electronics retailer would be sold over liquidating its assets.

Today, Circuit City Stores said the interested parties were "highly motivated" to provide financing to permit the electronics retailer to restructure its operations without naming who the parties were. But in May, Circuit City had opened its books to Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI), though by July Blockbuster pulled out of a $1 billion bid due to market conditions. Now, with the economy pushing Circuit City onto the ropes, Blockbuster may be a strong candidate in renewing talks to create a 9300-store chain of specialty consumer electronics products that would focus on video games, movie rentals and consumer electronic products. Best Buy is also a possible suitor for Circuit City as well, though an infusion of capital from a private investment group is also a possibility.

Circuit City said it planned on closing 156 stores, but if financing were brought into play from a private investment group, a deeper consolidation of stores could be in play. In all, Circuit City operates 565 stores in the U.S. and 765 retail stores and dealer outlets in Canada.