Nifty below 7350, Sensex flat; Bank Nifty rises over 1%

Moneycontrol Bureau11:50 am FII view: While many market experts are worried about any further fall, UBS is of a different view. Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Geoffrey Dennis, Head-Global Emerging Market Strategy from the firm says global markets are very close to the end of selling. He believes that China is rebalancing its growth but the global economy is not in a decent shape. Talking on the Indian markets, he says India is the best growth story amongst emerging markets (EMs) and will relatively outperform other EMs. The country's economy is in a good shape but crude oil prices will direct the future of India, Dennis adds. Further, he believes the next trigger for the market would be stabilisation of crude prices as emerging market growth is co-related to oil prices.11:30 am Buzzing: Shares of Axis Bank gained 6 percent intraday. The bank has posted better-than-expected December quarter results. Profit increased 14.5 percent year-on-year to Rs 2175.30 crore from Rs 1899.76 crore, driven by other income and net interest income despite higher provisions.

However, its asset quality has worsened even after a higher provisions. Most analayst have maintained neutral rating and few have cut target price. Macquarie has maintained neutral rating on the stock with a price target of Rs 438 per share.

The management indicated that FY16 credit costs will likely be 120-125 basis points. In addition, on certain restructured accounts worth Rs 2500 crore, RBI’s measures will drive an incremental provision of Rs 250 crore in FY17. "For our FY17/FY18 estimates, we assume elevated credit costs of 125 bps factoring in potential risks on restructured book and large corporate exposures," it adds.

Don't miss: Idea Q3 profit seen down 6%, pricing pressure may continue

The market has gone flat. The Sensex is up 18.12 points at 24080.16 and the Nifty is up 9 points or 0.1 percent at 7318.30. About 1282 shares have advanced, 837 shares declined, and 128 shares are unchanged.

Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Tata Steel, BHEL and Hero MotoCorp are top gainers while ONGC, Tata Motors, HUL, Coal India and Maruti are losers.

Markets in Asia came off session highs, but mostly traded higher Thursday, despite another selloff on Wall Street overnight, with the region showing a mild recovery after concerns over China and fresh lows for oil prices spurred a global rout.

According to reports, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the central bank will stick to its 2 percent inflation target, adding Japan's economic fundamentals remain firm.