BSE Sensex, Nifty end flat; Bharti, TCS, HUL laggards

03:50 pm FM speaks: Concerned over the mounting level of bad loans, Finance Minister P Chidambaram today asked banks to take stern steps to recover advances from wilful defaulters. "So banks must pay attention to the portfolio of non-performing assets, identify the wilful defaulters, take stern steps to recover loans from wilful defaulters even while helping others who are genuinely caught in business downturn to recover so that they can pay the loans in course of time. NPAs, or bad loans, of public sector banks rose 28.5 percent to Rs 2.36 lakh crore in September last year from Rs 1.83 lakh crore in March 2013.

03:40 pm Market closing: The market on a flat note with focus on pharma, realty and telecom stocks. The Sensex was down 42.29 points at 20334.27, and the Nifty ended at 6053.45, down 9.75 points. About 1313 shares have advanced, 1249 shares declined, and 145 shares are unchanged. Dr Reddy's Labs, Sun Pharma , Maruti Suzuki, L&T and ONGC were top gainers in the Sensex. On the losing side were Bharti Airtel , TCS , HUL , HDFC and GAIL.

03:30 pm Stock in focus: The country's biggest realtor, DLF , has been paid Rs 675 crore as refund towards the scrapped convention centre it was to develop as part of the preparation for the Commonwealth Games held in Delhi in 2010, reports CNBC- TV18 quoting sources. The company had acquired a 35-acre plot by paying Rs 901 crore in 2007 to develop a convention centre that would house hotels, commercial complexes and meeting areas but the project got into a legal tussle with the Delhi Development Authority when DLF proposed to acquire a foreign partner for the same. Sources say DLF has now agreed to forfeit Rs 225 crore of the amount it paid in 2007, ending a seven-year battle with the DDA. DLF, which has about Rs 19,000 crore of borrowings on its books, as per its March financials, has been looking to pare debt since some time by selling non-core assets.

03:20 pm Macro outlook: Even as economic growth is expected to rebound, banks in India are likely to remain ''subdued'' on the growth, profitability and asset quality fronts, a report by ratings major Standard & Poor's has said. Indian banks have been particularly hit on the asset quality front, with non-performing assets for the sector reaching nearly a decade high, reeling under the double whammy of high interest rates and weak economic growth. "We expect weakness in banks' asset quality to persist for the next 12 months because the economic recovery is likely to be tepid, and it will take time for the domestic industry to recover and corporate balance sheet leverage to decline," Amit Pandey, credit analyst, Standard & Poor's, said.

03:10 pm Result: Lower income led India Cements' net profit to decline by 98 percent in the December quarter at Rs 42 lakh. The company had clocked Rs 26.12 crore net profit during the October-December period of the last fiscal, it said in a BSE filing. Total income of India Cements, which has 10 plants with a combined capacity of 15.5 million tonnes per annum, fell to Rs 1,037.64 crore during the reporting quarter from Rs 1,083.88 crore a year earlier.

03:00 pm Big deal: Abu Dhabi National Energy Co (TAQA) , leading a consortium that plans to invest around USD 2 billion to acquire hydropower assets in India, expects to close the deal this quarter, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. TAQA, majority-owned by the Abu Dhabi government, is buying two hydropower plants owned by Jaiprakash Power Ventures in Himachal Pradesh. The plants have a total capacity of 1,300 megawatts. TAQA plans to take a majority stake in the plants while India's IDFC Alternatives and PSP Investments, a Canadian pension fund manager, will hold minority stakes, the sources said. "They are working to finalise it before the end of this quarter, reinforcing TAQA's confidence in the Indian market to complement its existing power generation business there," an Abu Dhabi source familiar with the matter said.

02:50 pm Apollo Hospitals reported a marginal uptick of 4 percent in its bottomline at Rs 83.4 crore compared to Rs 80.6 crore a year ago. Total Income was up 16 percent from Rs 856 crore to Rs 993.3 crore. The stock was trading flat.

02:45pm Top losers in BSE S&P 500: Idea Cellular , Thomas Cook , Punj Lloyd , United Bank, Puravankara, JM Financial and Monnet Ispat were down in the range of 4 to 7 percent.

02:30pm Currency outlook: The past few weeks have been chaotic for emerging market currencies. But the Indian rupee has managed to stay away from the mayhem. This can be attributed to the work done by the authorities to improve macroeconomic issues that were plaguing the economy during mid-2013, says Hitendra Dave, Head-Global Markets, HSBC India. Current account deficit has come down quite sharply, he adds.

02:21pm Midcap buzzers:  In the midcap space, shares of Wockhardt , TV18, Apollo Tyres , Jubilant FoodWorks and Voltas were buzzing in trade today.

02:15pm Rel Comm CEO satisfied with Q3 performance: Reliance Communications' performance in the third quarter , in which it logged a 2.7 percent profit growth year-on-year along with a 1.9 percent rise in revenue, was ''satisfying'', President & CEO (Wireless) Gurdeep Singh said.

02:10pm Shares of Indian pharmaceutical companies perceived as defensive gain on risk aversion after overseas investors sold Rs 267 crore worth of Indian shares on Friday, extending their selling streak to a seventh day, provisional exchange data shows, dealers say.

Indian stocks took a breather today and the Nifty was consolidating around 6150 mark after a turbulent ride of nearly 200 points last week. European markets were also trading flat while Nikkei and Shanghai closed higher from the basket of Asian markets. The Sensex was down 4 points at 20372.24, and the Nifty was down 1 point at 6062.30. The breadth of the market was positive. About 1264 shares advanced, 1093 shares declined, and 145 shares remain unchanged. DLF, Maruti Suzuki, IDFC, Sun Pharma and Larsen were top gainers in the Nifty. Top losers in the Nifty were HUL, TCS, Jaiprakash Associates , Bharti Airtel and HDFC.

1:50 pm Boardroom: Underperformance in its diamond business weighed on the third-quarter margins of PC Jeweller, CFO Sanjeev Bhatia said in an interview, soon after the company reported its earnings. ''The company had witnessed higher profit in the second quarter due to the rupee depreciation,'' Bhatia said, adding that the industry witnessed ''turbulent times'' in the third quarter. Going forward, PC Jeweller would maintain its quantum of exports at current levels, he said. Supply of gold -- on which the government has slapped high duty in a bid to curb its imports -- has smoothened compared to a few quarters ago, according to the CFO.

1:40 pm Mining status report: Shooting down criticism that his government is anti-mining, Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikkar said he is awaiting Supreme Court's order allowing resumption of mining activity but with certain restrictions. "Any restriction which takes care of environment is welcome," he said. The coastal state's economy has suffered since mining ban was imposed on it by the Supreme Court on account of largescale illegal activities. Parrikkar has often been accused by the Congress as being the "kingpin" behind closure of mining in Goa that rendered hundreds jobless. Clarifying his position in an exclusive interview to CNBC-TV18, Parrikkar said he is not in favour of the proposed mining cap if logistical hurdles are removed.  He candidly mentioned that the ban has resulted in the state losing 25 percent of its revenue.

1:30 pm Court order: Supreme Court directed that the "status quo" be maintained in the sale of United Spirits Ltd to British group Diageo Plc until April, when the court will hear the matter again. In December, a regional Indian court ordered the annulment of the sale in response to a petition by creditors of United Breweries Holdings, which sold its stake in United Spirits to Diageo through a complicated share transaction. Diageo had said it will appeal the decision. The Supreme Court issued a notice to both United Spirits and Diageo on Monday and said it would hear the matter at length.

1:20 pm Buzzing: Shares of Puravankara Projects slumped 6 percent intraday trade on Monday as it reported dismal December quarter results, dented by land and raw material cost. Its consolidated net profit fell 68.78 percent to Rs 20.1 crore in the quarter ended 31 December, 2013 compared to Rs 64.4 crore on a yearly basis. During the quarter, revenue shrunk 13.67 percent to Rs 268.30 crore from Rs 310.6 crore in corresponding quarter last fiscal. There was a big drop in operational performance as the real estate developer had to incur major land cost in third quarter at Rs 406 crore versus Rs 146 crore year-on-year.  During the period, material and contract cost also jumped 24 percent (Y-o-Y) from Rs 135 crore to Rs  167 crore.

The market continues to remain flat while holding the crucial support at 6050. The Nifty is down 0.95 points at 6062.25 and the Sensex is down 0.22 points at 20376.34. Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy's Labs, ONGC, Tata Motors and Maruti Suzuki are top gainers in the Sensex. Among the losers are HUL, TCS, Bharti Airtel and HDFC. About 1208 shares have advanced, 1072 shares declined, and 145 shares are unchanged. DLF is the biggest gainer on the Nifty while telecom stocks are trading weak. In earnings today-- Tata Motors is likely to outperform the sector in earnings growth. In a CNBC-TV18 poll, revenues are seen 35 percent higher at Rs 62,109 crore. Profit may double to Rs 3,420 crore year-on-year. Meanwhile, Gold edged higher for a second session on speculation that the Federal Reserve would slow the pace of its stimulus tapering after a weak US jobs report raised questions over the state of economic recovery, reports Reuters. Some analysts said the gains may not last as the labour market weakness could be due to weather-related issues.

12:53 pm Telecom stocks extend losses: Idea Cellular was down over six percent in the afternoon trade. The stock is down over 20 percent in last one month. Shares of Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications were down in the range of two to three percent. Higher pricing for 900MHz band spectrum increases renewal liability of Bharti and Idea which is a big negative for these companies.

12:40 pm India Cements cracks: The company reported third quarter earnings lower than street expectations. The company barely managed to breakeven in green. The profit was at Rs 0.4 crore compared to Rs 26 crore a year ago. The stock was down 1 percent post results.

12:30 pm FII outlook: "India is a buy but purely because I foresee a BJP victory. If you took that away from the equation, if I thought Congress is going to win with a coalition then I would be a seller, but I am going to take the bet that BJP wins,'' says Mark Matthews of Bank Julius Baer.

A dull session for the market so far as benchmark index Nifty was trading in a narrow band of 20 points around 6160 level. Heavyweights were taking a breather this week after Nifty rallied 100 points last week from its 200 day moving average of 5975. The Sensex was down 5.48 points at 20371.08 and the Nifty was down 1.40 points at 6061.80. About 1177 shares advanced, 920 shares declined, and 137 shares were unchanged. Selective pharma, capital goods and realty stocks were up in trade today with modest gains. IT and FMCG stocks continue to witness profit booking today. Top gainers in the Nifty were DLF , Sun Pharma , Dr Reddys Labs , IDFC and Tata Motors . TCS , Jaiprakash Associates , GAIL , HUL and Bharti Airtel were top losers. The most active shares on NSE were TCS, Tata Steel , Aurobindo Pharma , Infosys and Reliance Industries .

11:50 am Banking license: Jalan Committee on new bank licences meets later today and the market feels decisions mac be announced. Last time, only two licences were issued - YES Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank. AK Purwar, former chairman of State Bank of India and industry expert feels this time more licences may be issued. According to him, the focus could be on organisations which can work for financial inclusion and highly specialised institutions focusing on infrastructure, healthcare education, services sector, among others. These issues may lead to a larger number of licences being issued this time. Santosh Singh, banking analyst, Espirito Santo Securities, feels NBFCs getting a bank licnence may not be a positive.

11:40 am Macro outlook: There is no way foreign investor community can choose to ignore India, says Naina Lal Kidwai, country head at HSBC India . Although Investments have slowed down considerably and the current environment is still fragile, Kidwai is ready to bet on good agricultural growth and rural demand as positives that would lead to a pick-up in the economy. India can clock GDP growth of 5.5-6.5 percent in FY15 if things improve, and most of it will be visible after elections when clarity on governance comes in. "Post elections, institutional investors would like to see a strong government," she said. Speaking about the fear of rupee resuming its fall, the banker said the currency will is not going to see rapid depreciation. "The government had acted very swiftly on the currency front which resulted in a manageable current account deficit."

11:30 am Market outlook: UR Bhat, MD, Dalton Capital Advisors feels that Nifty may settle between 5900-6200 range for the near-term. This is because not only have the foreign institutional investor (FII) flows been weak in February but even the December quarter results have not been impressive. According to him the Fed taper too is likely to continue, so the only news that could turn the sentiment for India would be some positive news flow on political front. Sector specifically, he said the pharma sector earnings have surprised positively in Q3, but he does not see any green shoots in the cyclical space.

11:20 am Buzzing: Shares of Wockhardt jumped 6 percent intraday on Monday as it posted better-than-expected December quarter results. The drug major reported a 29 percent drop in quarterly net profit, hit by a fall in sales after the US health regulator banned two of the drugmaker's plants from exporting products to the United States. In November, the US Food and Drug Administration issued an import alert, effectively a ban, against Wockhardt's Chikalthana plant in western India. The FDA had imposed a ban on the company's Waluj plant in May.

It is a flat trading day on Dalal Street as Nifty seemed to be stuck at 6060. The Nifty is down 0.05 points at 6063.15. The Sensex is up 1.99 points at 20378.55. About 1140 shares have advanced, 745 shares declined, and 121 shares are unchanged. Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy's Labs, Tata Motors, Reliance and Tata Steel are major gainers in the Sensex. Among the laggards are HUL, Bharti Airtel, GAIL, TCS and HDFC Bank. The rupee is trading at a two-week high versus the dollar tracking avian units post weak US jobs data. Gilts are higher as the rupee rises and positive market sentiment after supply of gilts this financial year comes to an end. Most Asian currencies are trading higher. The Korean won, Malaysian ringgit, Thai baht and Indonesian rupiah were up against the greenback today, while the Philippine peso was off low. Asian markets are trading mostly higher.

10:45 am Shares of Apollo Tyres , Cadila Healthcare , Divis Labs , Global Offshore and Kajaria Ceramics touched 52-week high today.

10:35 am CNBC-TV18 exclusive: Sources told CNBC-TV18 that DLF may get Rs 675 crore from Delhi Development Authority ending a seven year long dispute with the authority. Earlier in the day the company announced sale of its property Amanresorts for Rs 2200 crore. In a statement, DLF said its subsidiary, DLF Global Hospitality, has completed the sale of entire 100 percent stake in Silverlink Resorts, which owns Amanresorts, to Aman Resorts Group Ltd for "an enterprise value of USD 358 million."

10:30 am: Shares of Thomas Cook and Sterling Holidays were trading flat after rallying over 6 percent in the opening bell. Tour operator Thomas Cook (India) on Saturday announced that it will merge its operations with resort owner Sterling Holiday Resorts India in a deal valued at Rs 870 crore. The merger, which is expected to close by the fourth quarter of 2014, will give Thomas Cook access to Sterling Resorts' 19 properties in 16 holiday destinations across India. Read more The benchmark index Nifty was trading flat on Monday reacting to mixed Asian cues. Japan's Nikkei share average rose to a one-week high, moving further away from a four-month low hit last week as gains on Wall Street and a softer yen underpinned sentiment. The Sensex was up 3.75 points or 0.02 percent at 20380.31, and the Nifty was up 3.30 points or 0.05 percent at 6066.50.The breadth of the market was positive. About 852 shares advanced, 569 shares declined, and 80 shares were unchanged. Auto major Tata Motors will announce its third quarter earnings today. According to CNBC-TV18 poll, the company is expected to report 35 percent jump in its consolidated revenues to Rs 62109 crore from Rs 46090 crore, a year ago. The bottomline is estimated to double from Rs 1627 crore to Rs 3420 crore in third quarter. The operating profit margins are also expected to improve by 190 basis points to 14.1 percent. Top gainers in the Sensex were Tata Steel (up 1.51%), Sun Pharma (up 1.28%), Sesa Sterlite (up 1.21%), Dr Reddys Labs (up 1.19%) and Wipro (up 1.12%). Bharti Airtel (down 1.74%), HDFC Bank (down 1.61%), NTPC (down 1.54%), GAIL (down 1.36%) and HUL (down 1.31%) were top losers.

9:50 am Poll: Auto major Tata Motors will announce its third quarter earnings today. According to CNBC-TV18 poll, the company is expected to report 35 percent jump in its consolidated revenues to Rs 62109 crore from Rs 46090 crore, a year ago. The bottomline is estimated to double from Rs 1627 crore to Rs 3420 crore in third quarter. The operating profit margins are also expected to improve by 190 basis points to 14.1 percent.

9:40 am FII view: According to James Glassman, Senior Economist at JPMorgan Chase Bank, the US jobs data is quite mixed because the US economy accelerated over the second half of year, so it does not make sense to think that hiring would slowdown.  So, at the most one can be cautious. However, the general feeling is that US economy is in good shape and the outlook for 2014 is decent, he said. He also believes that Fed will continue with the unwinding of asset purchases albeit cautiously. Fed still has quite a bit of stimulus in place with the overnight interest rates still at zero. For a long time slowdown in European economies have affected developing economies like India, but with Europe showing improvement in growth, developing economies seem to be regaining some momentum said Glassman.

9:30 am Buzzing: Shares of DLF jumped 6 percent intraday as the real estate developer sold Amanresorts to its original founder Adrian Zecha for USD 358 million. The sale will help the realty company to cut its debt.  In a statement, DLF said its subsidiary, DLF Global Hospitality Ltd, has completed the sale of entire 100 percent stake in Silverlink Resorts, which owns Amanresorts, to Aman Resorts Group Ltd for "an enterprise value of USD 358 million."

The market has opened in positive terrain. The Sensex is up 57.53 points at 20434.09, and the Nifty is up 9.60 points at 6072.80. About 191 shares have advanced, 59 shares declined, and 14 shares are unchanged. Cipla , Tata Motors, HDFC , Tata Steel and Wipro are big gainers in the Sensex. Among the laggards are L&T, Bajaj Auto , GAIL , ITC and Tata Power . In telecom, on day 6 of the 2G auctions Assam, Gujarat and Maharashtra see more demand than supply for 1,800 MHz. DOT secretary says bids have crossed Rs 56,189 crore. The rupee gained in the early trade. It opened higher by 13 paise at 62.15 per dollar versus 62.28 Friday. Agam Gupta of Standard Chartered said that, "Expect demand to come in from nationalised banks at 62.10/dollar. FIIs will continue to sell dollar on upticks. Range for the day is seen between 62-62.4/dollar. For the second straight year, the Indian economy is likely to grow below 5 percent. The country's apex statistical body sees the economy growing by 4.9 percent this year. Much of this comes from agriculture which is seen growing by 4.6 percent and services that is estimated to grow by 6.9 percent. In the global markets, Japan's Nikkei share average rose to a one-week high, moving further away from a four-month low hit last week as gains on Wall Street and a softer yen underpinned sentiment. Analysts said that foreign investors including macro funds are cautiously stepping back to buy recently-battered Japanese stocks as they keep an eye on key events this week. New Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen delivers her first testimony to the House on Tuesday and the senate on Thursday.