The markets seemingly decided to pause after running ahead in the previous session.
The barometer index struck a fresh 25-month high in afternoon trades and came within kissing distasnce of the 18k mark, but the milestone will have to wait for another day.
The Sensex moved in a narrow range of around 90 points before ending at 17941, higher by six points, and the Nifty closed at 5366, down two points.
There was a lot of activity in the broader space though. The mid-cap and small-cap indices added around half a percent each at 7013 and 8921 respectively.
And the market breadth was strong, with 1,743 advancing stocks as against 1168 declines.
Realty stocks were in demand, with DLF, Sobha Developers and Ansal Properties rising 2 per cent-6 per cent each. And metal stocks extended their previous day's gains on the back of firm prices on the London Metal Exchange overnight.
Tata Steel, Sail and Sterlite were among the key gainers, adding about a percent each. But IT stocks fell as the rupee hit a 19-month high against the dollar. Infosys, TCS and Wipro lost about a per cent each
