Unveiling The Journey Of Foreign Direct Investment In The Retail Trading Industry In India

Milan Prajapati, B.Com LL.B. (Hons.), Institute of Law, Nirma Univeristy.

ABSTRACT

Individuals and companies who offer completed goods and services to consumers through their offline or online storefronts make up the retail market sector of the Indian economy. Over a period of 30 years since the economic reforms made in the late 20th century, the retail market in India has been valued at around USD 900 billion. The likes of the upcoming technologies like the Internet of things (IoT) is revolutionising the current retail business in India. It is opening up new options for supply chain management, customer support, and physical storefronts. It is also offering new platforms, such as home-based linked gadgets. Over the past ten years, India's retail industry has experienced substantial Indian retail market is expected to reach $1.1 Tn by 2027 and $2 Tn by 2032 growing at 25% CAGR1. The reason for this acceleration in the growth is because of the various initiatives and reforms being brought by the government. Up till now, 100% automated FDI was not allowed under the investment laws governing the Indian economy, but recently a policy has been issued by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) granting 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in case of Single Brand Retail Trading (SBRT)2 and duty- free shops through an automatic route. In this paper we would be discussing about the how the FDI policy has been changing over the time for different segments like Single and Multi-Brand Product Retail Trading and what is the regulatory framework surrounding the retail industry in India.

Keywords: Single Brand Retail Trading (SBRT), Multi Brand Retail Trading (MBRT), India’s Retail industry, FDI in the Retail sector.