NEW DELHI: India is considering a proposal to lift a cap on investment by foreign retailers in local supermarkets, according to people with the knowledge of the matter.
A meeting led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi may decide on a proposal to allow 100% investment by retailers such as Wal-Mart of the US and Carrefour of France if they agree to sell locally made products and invest at least US$100 million, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are taking part in the discussions, the sources said.
The move is a partial reversal of Modi’s opposition to foreign retailers as he attempts to create jobs even at the expense of alienating his core support base of traders. After coming to power in 2014, his administration barred foreign investment in multi-brand retail, enacted by the previous government, to fulfill a key campaign pledge.
The proposal to ease the rules has other conditions attached. Retailers will have to spend at least $50 million on storage and logistics infrastructure and employ 1,000 people for every $100 million of investment, apart from sourcing 30% of their products from small companies, the people said.
Jagdish Thakkar, a spokesman in the Prime Minister’s Office, did not return calls seeking comment, while finance ministry spokesman DS Malik did not answer calls made to his mobile phone.
Local traders are opposed to foreign retailers setting up stores in the country of 1.3 billion people, saying the move will endanger their livelihood. The current foreign direct investment policy permits overseas companies to own a stake of up to 51% in an Indian company for multi-brand retail but it has never been implemented.
The food processing ministry has been pushing to partially ease rules for retailers that would allow them to sell soaps, shampoos and toothpastes along with food products. Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal said in May that such a move could lead to at least $10 billion in the sector over the next two to three years.
India’s food and grocery market is the world’s sixth largest, with retail contributing 70% of sales. Food is one of the largest segments in India’s retail sector, valued about $600 billion. India attracted $935.74 million FDI in retail trading from April 2000 to December 2016.
Some of the foreign retailers have either closed down or curtailed operations because of policy uncertainty. In 2013, Walmart ended its India wholesale joint venture after facing troubles in the country where it was investigated by the government as well an internal probe for violations of US anti-corruption laws.
Carrefour, France’s biggest retailer, closed its five Indian wholesale stores last year, ending its four-year presence in the country. Groupe Auchan, another French supermarket operator, in August ended its franchise agreement with billionaire Micky Jagtiani’s Landmark Group.