Walmart deal to hit retail sector: Traders

New Delhi, May 10 

Traders’ body CAIT on Thursday said Walmart’s $16-billion acquisition of home-grown retailer Flipkart will affect India’s retail sector “very badly” and demanded scanning and scrutinising the deal from “different angles” by the government.

US retailer Walmart Inc on Wednesday announced the acquisition of 77% stake in Flipkart. The deal values the 11-year old Indian e-commerce firm at $20.8 billion.

“A regulatory authority should be constituted by the government which should scan the details of Walmart-Flipkart deal and it should be scrutinised from different angles like competition and cyber security, predatory pricing, deep discounting and loss funding,” CAIT secretary general Praveen Khandelwal said.

“After assessing the deal, we will either represent to government or to the Competition Commission, or we will go to court,” he added. 

US giant to open 50 new cash-and-carry stores

Walmart Inc on Thursday said it will continue to grow its wholesale cash-and-carry business, adding 50 new stores in the next 4-5 years.

“We currently have 21 stores and plan to open 50 stores in 4 to 5 years. Plans are on track,” Walmart India president and CEO Krish Iyer said at a select media roundtable called to explain the Flipkart deal.

Walmart chief executive Doug McMillon said Flipkart, in which the US retailer is acquiring 77% stake, would continue to operate as a separate board-managed company with co-founder Binny Bansal as the CEO.  — PTI

e-comm firms violating  FDI norms: Retailers

New Delhi: The Retailers Association of India (RAI) has taken exception to “some e-commerce companies” not following the FDI policy and indulging in discounting. The criticism from the retail industry follows a similar stand taken by traders after the mega deal was announced. The RAI said as representatives of the entire retail industry, it is RAI’s policy not to comment on any deals between individual companies. “Having said that, we would like to affirm our support to both online and offline channels of retail as well as Indian and international retail”, it said. The industry body of retailers, which includes leading Indian retail chains, said, “We believe some e-commerce companies in India have not been adhering to the guidelines issued under the Press Note 3 of the FDI Policy for marketplaces”. TNS