India has reversed its decision to let foreign retailers such as Wal-mart ( WMT , quote), Carrefour SA ( CRRFY , quote ) and Costco Wholesale Corporation ( COST , quote ) own 51% of retail entities, which is a significant loss for the country and its consumers.
As reported in the Financial Times in an article by James Fontanelle-Khan, "India drops proposal to open up for western retailers," the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce called the reversal by India's ruling Congress "deeply disappointing."
As detailed in a previous article on www.emergingmoney.com , " India changes the game by opening its retail sector ," the country stood much to gain from greater foreign investment.
Due to the primitive state of India's infrastructure, a great deal of produce is lost in transit to market, pushing food prices upward. There is no entity in the world better at logistics than Wal-Mart (WMT).
In addition, India's economy is stalling. The automobile, banking and airline industries are all in deep trouble. The rupee has been pounded. Credit raters have threatened to downgrade the sovereign debt of India.
As also reviewed on recent articles on www.emergingmoney.com , the closed-end fund for India, The India Fund ( IFN , quote ) is trading near its year low.
Foreign investment of both capital and management expertise from retailers such as Wal-Mart (WMT), Costco (COST) and Carrefoure SA (CRFFY) is much needed by India.
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