Ruling out relaxation of the mandatory sourcing norm for global retailers who want to set up stores in India, the government on Tuesday said companies have to procure 30 per cent of their merchandise requirement from domestic small industries.

While the potential appears huge, the government's condition requiring foreign retailers to source 30 per cent of the value of their goods locally, from small enterprises, could prove a sticking point.

Centre is reaching out to the non-UPA states to seek support for allowing 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail, as it could not implement the Cabinet decision in the face of strong opposition from UPA ally Trinamool Congress.

This would be the largest investment in the single-brand retailing ever since the government has allowed foreign investment in this sector in January this year.

Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma is now spoken of as a strong contender for the job of India's finance minister if Pranab Mukherjee goes up Raisina Hill to Rashtrapati Bhavan. He met Business Today the day before a trip to Brazil. Excerpts from the interview:

Infosys, India's second largest IT exporter, reported encouraging results for the third quarter ended December 2011.

Global retail giants, including IKEA, Walmart and Carrefour, are studying the finer details of India's relaxed FDI norms for the sector as they look to tap opportunities in the country.