Analyst Insight: With the government of India recently liberalizing foreign investment into the country's retail sector, many global retailers are eyeing the country as the next expansion opportunity. The experience of early entrants into India's organized retail has shown that supply chain inefficiencies are among the top hurdles to profitability. The unique Indian context requires creative sourcing approaches and significant investment in training and retaining local skilled supply chain talent. - Viktoria Sadlovska, Chief Research Officer, Prameya Research

President Barack Obama is trying to persuade the United States to adopt a cap-and-trade system to curb greenhouse gas emissions. But the European Union's Emissions Trading System "” the world's flagship effort "” is sputtering. European carbon permits, which traded at about €30 ($40) per ton a few years ago, are now hovering at about €5 per ton or less.

President Obama didn't mention the word "retail" a single time in his State of the Union address. But retailers could nonetheless be widely impacted by proposals put forth in the annual speech to Congress, ranging from promises to create jobs and grow the economy to a plan to increase the federal minimum wage that is drawing headlines this morning.

Labelmaster, a manufacturer and distributor of items for complying with regulations on the movement of hazardous materials, has added reusable crates to its product line.