Markets at record highs; Nifty regains its crucial 9,500 level

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative

In a volatile trading session, the benchmark indices hit fresh record highs in the afternoon trade even as political turmoil in Washington spooked global investors, sending Asian markets lower. 

At 1:42 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 30,667, up 85 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,523, up 12 points.

The 30-share Sensex gained as much as 88 points to hit its fresh record high of 30,670, while the broader 50-share Nifty added 15 points to notch its all-time high of 9,528.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap index gained 0.2%, while the S&P BSE Smallcap index was little changed. 

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, remained negative. On the BSE, 1,389 shares fell and 1,243 shares rose. A total of 158 shares were unchanged. 

Analysts now warn about the near-term corrections in the market after a remarkable run. Since crossing the 9,000-mark on March 14, the broader Nifty has risen around 5.7% in just over two months and is the biggest percentage gaining Asian index so far this year as of Tuesday's close.

Among individual gainers, Tata Steel rose as much as 8.7% and was the leading gainer on Sensex and Nifty after the company's quarterly loss narrowed, while it also agreed to the main terms of a deal for a pension scheme for its British workers.

Sobha surged 9% to Rs 448, also its 52-week high on BSE, after the company reported 68% jump in its consolidated net profit at Rs 46.6 crore for the quarter ended March 2017 (Q4FY17). The real estate developer had logged profit of Rs 27.7 crore in the same quarter last year.

Meanwhile, Dhanlaxmi Bank soared to its highest since December 2014 after posting a profit in its March quarter from a loss a year ago.

Among the decliners, Andhra Bank fell as much as 4.9% after reporting a 32% drop in profit for March quarter.

(With inputs from Reuters)