Anand Sharma

egy, Consider This IKEA has applied to the Indian government for permission to invest $1.98 billion to open 25 stores in that country over the next 15-20 years. After a meeting last month between IKEA CEO Mikael Ohlsson and India trade minister Anand Sharma, the retailer’s concerns over the government’s stipulation that a percentage of products must be sourced from local enterprises seem to have eased. IKEA is intent on driving its business in emerging markets to offset its high level of dependency for top-line growth in Western Europe, a region where IKEA is finding it increasingly difficult to

Swedish furniture giant IKEA plans over the next three years to double its annual spending on products from South Asia to $1.31 billion, and is pressing the Indian government to relax investment regulations so it can launch its retail superstores in the country, its CEO told reporters.