Concern that slowing growth, a gloomy global outlook with Eurozone in crisis and the US economy still sluggish and graft scandals at home are souring the India story, saw Prime Minister Manmohan Singh turn to FDI in retail as a mood changer. A recognition that urgent steps were needed to shore up the economy led Singh to deliver a blunt warning at the start of Parliament's winter session: "As you all know, the global economy is facing serious difficulties and if we don't manage our affairs well we can also go down."