AT Kearney

China and India have seen their ratings slip from the top three of international consulting firm AT Kearney’s Global Retail Development Index (GDRI).

The list ranks investment opportunities for retailers in the top 30 developing economies based on four criteria: country and business risk; market attractiveness; market saturation; and time pressure.

China and India ranked first and third respectively on last year’s list. China saw the biggest dip this year dropping five spots to rank sixth, while India slipped one place to third.

Brazil, Uruguay and Chile all moved up the rankings to fill out the top three positions on this year’s list.

According to a report on AT Kearney’s website, South America has emerged as the leading region this year based largely on its continued growth in the face of the economic downturn.

Asia has dropped in the rankings, despite the region being seen as leading the global recovery. The main reason for China’s fall, according to AT Kearney, was the saturation of the market there.

The report continued that now was the best time for investment in India as growth fundamentals, such as forecasted annual growth of 8.7 per cent until 2016, boded well for the country’s retail sector.