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India's Nifty 50 index closed at a fresh high on Thursday, led by gains in metals and real estate stocks, while inflows into small and mid-cap indexes continued.

The Nifty 50 ended up 0.16% at 20,103.10, while the S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.08% to 67,519. Both indexes hit record highs earlier in the session.

The Nifty had scaled new peaks on Monday and Tuesday, while the Sensex hit a record high for the first time since July 20 in the day.

"The undertone for the benchmarks is positive and they could see further upside but with higher volatility," said Anita Gandhi, director at Arihant Capital Markets.

Metals extended gains for a second session, adding 1.49% and nearly recouping a 2.67% decline on Tuesday. Hindalco Industries and Tata Steel were among top Nifty gainers.

Real estate stocks jumped 1.39% after Bombay Dyeing sold a land parcel for $627 million.

Analysts said that the likelihood of a U.S. Federal Reserve rate pause could further support the sector.

The more domestically focussed small-caps and mid-caps, which posted their worst slide this year on Tuesday, gained 1.31% and 1.17%, respectively.

"When they (small- and mid-caps) correct, they correct a lot. They do not give easy exits to investors," warned Samrat Dasgupta, CEO at Esquire Capital Advisors, adding that investors should remain cautious on the segment.

Small- and mid-caps, which include more companies, have jumped nearly 31% and 29%, respectively this year, outperforming the more-than-10% gains in the benchmarks.

Among individual stocks, UPL climbed 3.86% on hopes of sustained earnings growth and margin expansion.

On the flip side, Asian Paints was the top Nifty 50 loser, shedding 1.14%, after Grasim Industries announced its foray into paints business.