India has approved long-awaited proposals to open up the retail market to global supermarket chains. Food Minister KV Thomas said the cabinet has agreed to 51% foreign ownership of multi-brand retail stores, allowing groups like Wal-Mart and Tesco to open stores. Such operators currently can only sell wholesale in India and not directly to customers. A decision on the issue has been pending for two years. Mr Thomas told reporters that the cabinet decided...

-Reuters   India's growth story is still "credible" and the move to open up the economy to global supermarket chains will help growth and control inflation, RBI governor Duvvuri Subbarao said on Friday. "It's commendable that government has taken the initiative. Let's hope that it will improve the logistics chain and supply chain management in agriculture," Subbarao said in a speech in Chandigarh. Late Thursday, the government approved 51 percent foreign direct investment in...

It wasn't just a vocal opposition that was against the Cabinet's decision to allow 51% foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail business. The cabinet itself was split down the middle, which had an animated — even heated — debate on the pros and cons of opening up a sector that was so far considered politically too sensitive for farmers, small traders and consumers. Finally it took the prime minister to...

Antony, Jairam and Virbhadra say it will hit small retailers badly The United Progressive Alliance government pushed through the proposal to permit 51% FDI in multi-brand retail and 100% foreign equity in single-brand trading on Thursday, in the face of vigorous protests not just from the Opposition and ally Trinamool Congress (TMC), but also disquiet in a section of the Congress. Following up on this, the Congress Core Group met here on...

-Reuters   Commerce minister Anand Sharma said on Friday that the government's new policy to allow foreign supermarkets into the country would create 10 million jobs over three years, while not affecting smaller, domestic retailers. The government on Thursday approved 51 percent foreign direct investment in the supermarket sector, paving the entry of firms such as Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour into one of the world's largest untapped markets. The government will have the first...