NEW DELHI, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- The Indian government, facing much opposition, Wednesday suspended its decision to open the country's $450 billion retail sector to foreign supermarkets.
The proposal by the coalition government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would have allowed foreign direct investment of as much as 51 percent in the supermarket sector, but opposition parties and some coalition members in his government refused to go along, paralyzing parliamentary proceedings.
The proposal would have paved the way for retail giants such as Walmart to enter one of the world's largest retail markets.
Parliament resumed regular business after the government announcement, the Press Trust of India reported.
Wall Street financial services firm J.P. Morgan had said foreign investment in multi-brand retail would speed up the pace of investment in the supply chain to meet demands of increasing scale and bring in the expertise of foreign retailers.
Opponents had maintained the influx of foreign giants would drive out millions of mom-and-pop stores and put millions of people out of work.
