The exterior of the Circuit City store in East Palo Alto, Calif., is shown. Circuit City Stores Inc., the Richmond, Va.-based company said Monday that it will shutter 155 of its more than 700 stores in 12 markets by Dec. 31, laying off thousands of employees.

Richmond, Va. ? As the lights go out at about 20 percent of Circuit City’s stores, including every one in the Kansas City area, the company is hoping that by closing hundreds of stores and cutting thousands of jobs it can survive consumers who are reluctant to spend and vendors less eager to give it credit.

But analysts say the moves announced Monday renewed the specter of bankruptcy hanging over the nation’s No. 2 consumer electronics retailer heading into a holiday shopping season that could determine its future.

“Clearly, (Circuit City) is frantically working to keep itself alive,” JP Morgan analyst Christopher Horvers wrote in a note to investors.

Circuit City Stores Inc. is closing 155 of its more than 700 U.S. stores by Dec. 31. The stores are spread throughout 28 states, including multiple locations in areas like Phoenix and Atlanta. It is laying off about 17 percent of its domestic work force, which could affect up to 7,300 people.

James A. Marcum, vice chairman and acting president and chief executive, called the decision to close stores “difficult, but necessary.”

“The weakened environment has resulted in a slowdown of consumer spending, further impacting our business as well as the business of our vendors,” Marcum said in a statement. “The combination of these trends has strained severely our working capital and liquidity.”

Based on nearly 43,000 employees as of Feb. 29, the layoffs could affect up to about 7,300 workers. The company said the number would likely be lower in part because employees in some markets may become employed at other stores. It would not give further details.

Richmond, Va.-based Circuit City also said it will further cut back on new store openings and plans to work with landlords to renegotiate leases, lower rent or terminate agreements while it deals with tightening credit from its vendors.