India halts foreign retail plan

India's government has suspended its plans to throw open its huge retail sector to foreign companies such as Wal-Mart, in a decision seen as a major capitulation to political opponents.The initial decision last month to allow foreign companies to own 51% of supermarkets in major cities and 100% of single-brand stores was hailed by the business community as a long overdue reform. The government said foreign retailers would bring better prices for farmers and lower prices for consumers by cutting out middlemen and upgrading the country's infrastructure. But opposition parties and even some members of the governing coalition protested