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Wal-Mart to enter Indian market
US supermarket giant Wal-Mart is to enter the Indian retail market after announcing a joint agreement with India's Bharti Enterprises.
The two companies said they had signed a deal to "jointly explore business opportunities" in India.
Bharti chairman Sunil Mittal said the two companies intended to open "several hundred" stores across India under the Wal-Mart brand name.
Wal-Mart's deal comes after Britain's Tesco ended talks with Bharti.
Tesco had hoped to reach a similar deal with Bharti, but its negotiations ended without agreement last week.
Bharti had also spoken with France's Carrefour and Germany's Metro, according to reports.
Fast-growing market
The Bharti joint venture is a huge opportunity for Wal-Mart to gain a foothold in a market analysts expect will double in value to $637bn (£330bn) by 2015.
"Wal-Mart was keen to get into India. I think they have chosen the right partner," said Mr Mittal.
"It is going to be a large investment, we are going to be a big player in this market."
Large overseas retailers such as Tesco and Wal-Mart are currently barred at the retail level in India, but not in the wholesale market.
Mr Mittal said the deal with Wal-Mart complied with existing government rules, suggesting Wal-Mart will handle the supply side of the operation, while Bharti will run the stores.
Bharti is a well-known brand in India, offering mobile phone services to more than 24 million users.
US supermarket giant Wal-Mart is to enter the Indian retail market after announcing a joint agreement with India's Bharti Enterprises.
The two companies said they had signed a deal to "jointly explore business opportunities" in India.
Bharti chairman Sunil Mittal said the two companies intended to open "several hundred" stores across India under the Wal-Mart brand name.
Wal-Mart's deal comes after Britain's Tesco ended talks with Bharti.
Tesco had hoped to reach a similar deal with Bharti, but its negotiations ended without agreement last week.
Bharti had also spoken with France's Carrefour and Germany's Metro, according to reports.
Fast-growing market
The Bharti joint venture is a huge opportunity for Wal-Mart to gain a foothold in a market analysts expect will double in value to $637bn (£330bn) by 2015.
"Wal-Mart was keen to get into India. I think they have chosen the right partner," said Mr Mittal.
"It is going to be a large investment, we are going to be a big player in this market."
Large overseas retailers such as Tesco and Wal-Mart are currently barred at the retail level in India, but not in the wholesale market.
Mr Mittal said the deal with Wal-Mart complied with existing government rules, suggesting Wal-Mart will handle the supply side of the operation, while Bharti will run the stores.
Bharti is a well-known brand in India, offering mobile phone services to more than 24 million users.
It wouldn't be capitalism, then. It's only captialism when the west benefits.
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