Bharti to finalize retail venture partner

By agencies   |   Wednesday, 26 July 2006, 19:30 IST
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NEW DELHI: India’s largest private telecom operator Bharti Airtel will finalize the overseas partner for its planned retail venture in the next couple of months. The company's joint managing director Rajan Mittal said that the company would be in a position to finalize its retail venture partner by the end of September. "The company is talking to one U.S. and two European retail majors,” Mittal said. India is the world’s fourth biggest retail market, however FDI is not allowed in the sector. Various retailers like Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour have evinced interest in entering the $250 billion market. There has been no development as of now in the status of the discussion with these three majors. By the next quarter we should be in a position to talk clearly about it, he added.