India opens up to foreign brands

An Indian man walks past a Levis store in New Delhi yesterday. India’s government has allowed foreign brands such as Adidas or home furnishings giant Ikea to open 100 per cent owned shops, but will continue to block the entry of supermarkets. The retail reform allowing wholly foreign-owned ‘single brand stores’ into the country was announced late Tuesday by the left-leaning government, which had initially announced sweeping plans to throw open the sector.