The Indian government, under two weeks of strong pressure from mom-and-pop stores, has suspended sweeping plans to open its huge retail sector to foreign companies like Walmart.
The Indian government, under two weeks of strong pressure from mom-and-pop stores, suspended sweeping plans to open its huge retail sector to foreign companies such as Wal-Mart (WMT), the Associated Press and Press Trust of India report.
Update at 9:46 a.m. ET: Reuters quotes an unidentified government source as saying the government will go ahead with plans to allow single-brand foreigner retailers, such as Nike, to own 100% of their outlets.
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The business community and government had hailed the original decision, announced Nov. 24, as an economic boost and a means to bring better prices to farmers and lower prices for consumers.
The measure drew strong opposition from locally owned stores, which feared they would be crushed by the onslaught of foreign companies. Opposition parties had disrupted parliment for two weeks in protest.
Under the original plan, foreign companies such as Wal-Mart could own 51% of supermarkets in major cities while single-brand retailers, such as Nike, could own 100% of their stores.
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