After opening the day in green share markets in India witnessed choppy trading activity and are presently trading marginally below the dotted line. Sectoral indices are trading on a mixed note, with stocks in the oil and gas sector and stocks in the IT sector witnessing maximum buying interest. While stocks in the power sector are leading the losses.

The BSE Sensex is trading down by 17 points (down 0.1%) and the NSE Nifty is trading down by 9 points (down 0.1%). Meanwhile, the BSE Mid Cap index is trading down by 1.5%, while the BSE Small Cap index is trading down by 1%. The rupee is trading at 67.32 to the US$.

In news from the retail sector. In the biggest acquisition for an Indian start-up, US giant Walmart signed a definitive agreement to acquire a 77% stake in India's largest e-commerce marketplace Flipkart with an investment of around US$16 billion.

The acquisition is the largest transaction in history of the online retail space not only in India but also globally.

Post the deal, Walmart will own 77% of Flipkart. The rise has been staggering for India's largest start-up which started with a modest capital of US$ 6,000 in 2007.

Flipkart's story resembles that of its global counterpart Amazon although at a smaller scale. Walmart's deal highlights India's increasing importance in the start-up space.

It also brings to the fore the importance of disruptors in an eco-system. Flipkart incurred losses of US$ 1.35 billion in FY17. Despite this, it is valued at a premium mainly due to its future potential.

The deal also puts focus on India's e-commerce sector, which is showing increasing signs of adoption.

The Growing Importance of E-Commerce

The growing clout of e-commerce is slowly turning it into a formidable distribution channel that's hard for companies to ignore. This is reflected in the sales growth clocked in various distribution channels as per Euromonitor.