Nifty holds 8900 ahead of expiry; Tata Motors, Bharti weak

11:50 am Market outlook: Market could correct in the short term as valuations have become rich and the recovery in the economy and corporate earnings is not up to the mark, says Pramod Gubbi of Ambit, Director-Institutional Sales, Ambit Capital. In an interview with  Gubbi says private banks were vulnerable to a pullback as they had run up quite sharply. He is bearish on state-owned banks as he says they still face many structural issues. Gubbi is advising his clients to buy Indian equities from a 2-3 year perspective as the long term story is attractive. And while a lot of global risks are abating, the possibility of a rate hike in the US is very much on the cards, he feels. He is closely watching the Budget for the government’s measures to revive the investment cycle. 11:30 am Interview: Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services sees its loan book in the Southern market improving apost the January harvest, Ramesh Iyer, Managing Director told. He said the company was seeing pressure specific to geographies and not products. Iyer said the company was trying to ensure that credit losses did not exceed 2 percent. The company is seeing working capital constraints and shrinking cash flows in semi urban and rural markets, Iyer said. He said the below par monsoon in some areas had affect the yields the company earned on its loans. Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services sees its loan book in the Southern market improving apost the January harvest, Ramesh Iyer, Managing Director told . He said the company was seeing pressure specific to geographies and not products. Iyer said the company was trying to ensure that credit losses did not exceed 2 percent. The company is seeing working capital constraints and shrinking cash flows in semi urban and rural markets, Iyer said. He said the below par monsoon in some areas had affect the yields the company earned on its loans. Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services sees its loan book in the Southern market improving apost the January harvest, Ramesh Iyer, Managing Director told. He said the company was seeing pressure specific to geographies and not products. Iyer said the company was trying to ensure that credit losses did not exceed 2 percent. The company is seeing working capital constraints and shrinking cash flows in semi urban and rural markets, Iyer said. He said the below par monsoon in some areas had affect the yields the company earned on its loans. Don't miss: Emami Q3 profit seen up 10.2% at Rs 166 cr: CNBC-TV18 Poll The market is still flat as the Sensex is down 12.22 points at 29558.82. The Nifty is up 4.50 points at 8915.00. About 977 shares have advanced, 957 shares declined, and 220 shares are unchanged. Sun Pharma, Maruti, TCS, Hero, and Dr Reddy's Labs are top gainers in the Sensex. Among the losers are Tata Motors, Bharti Airtel, GAIL, Tata Steel and Cipla. Brokers said emergence of profit-booking by cautious investors in recent gainers at record levels ahead of tomorrow's monthly expiry in the derivatives segment mainly pulled down the key indices from their peaks. Besides, a weakening trend at other Asian markets following yesterday's heavy sell-off in US markets on poor earnings reports negatively impacted trading sentiments here, they said. Gold clung to overnight gains to trade just above USD 1,290 an ounce, with focus turning to whether a weaker global economy may curb the Federal Reserve's enthusiasm to raise interest rates. The Federal Open Market Committee will release a statement at the end of its two-day policy meeting later in the day. Analysts say some disappointing corporate earnings and an unexpected drop in U.S. durable goods orders in December could push back expectations for a rate hike largely seen happening by mid-year.