Singapore stocks ended slightly lower on Tuesday, dragged down by lenders such as DBS Group Holdings even as trading across Asia was positive as Japan, Korea markets reopened after holidays.
Asian shares rose, shrugging off modest losses on Wall Street. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5 percent.
Japan's Nikkei stock index reversed early losses and gained 0.4 percent, as markets reopened after a public holiday on Monday. Seoul markets were closed last week and on Monday for public holidays.
The Straits Times Index fell 0.08 percent or 3 points to 3,288. It ended 0.01 percent higher on Monday, taking the year-to-date performance to about 14 percent.
United Overseas Bank dropped 0.5 percent, Overseas-Chinese Banking Corp lost 0.4 percent and DBS Group Holdings fell 0.1 percent.
Engineering services provider Boustead Projects advanced 1.2 percent after its unit Boustead Projects E&C Pte secured S$56 million of contracts in Singapore.
Real estate investment trust SPH REIT Management rose 1 percent after reporting an increase in fourth-quarter distribution per unit and gross revenue.
About 1.5 million shares worth S$960 million changed hands, with gainers outnumbering losers 246 to 184.
