India Cancels Walmart Plans

It looks like Walmart will have to wait to get a crack at the Indian market. The government suspended a plan to allow overseas retailers to open stores in the country after protests by opposition parties. The government had announced on Nov. 24 that it would allow foreign companies to own 51 percent of supermarkets and 100 percent of single-brand stores, good news for companies like Walmart and Tesco that had been eyeing the Indian market. But opposition parties said the move would kill Indian mom-and-pop stores. Now Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee says foreign retail is "suspended until a consensus is developed through consultations with various stakeholders."