Singapore stocks ended slightly lower on Thursday, as gains in lenders such as OCBC and United Overseas Bank were offset by the weakness in Asian shares after U.S. tech stocks slumped overnight.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.9 percent, with technology bellwether Samsung Electronics falling 2.9 percent to two-month lows and Taiwan's TSMC down 1.9 percent.
In the U.S., the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 1.27 percent as investors shifted to financials and other sectors following a strong rally in technology stocks.
The Straits Times Index edged down 0.16 percent or 5.5 points to 3,433. It ended 0.1 percent lower on Wednesday, taking the year-to-date performance to about 19 percent.
DBS Group Holdings dropped 1.1 percent while United Overseas Bank gained 0.8 percent and Oversea-Chinese Banking was up 0.5 percent.
Shares in No Signboard Holdings Ltd, known for its signature white pepper crab dish, jumped as much as 11 percent above the IPO price in Thursay's debut.
Singapore-based developer and landlord Perennial Real Estate Holdings gained 1.2 percent after its largest shareholder Kuok Khoon Hong raised his stake in the company to 20 percent.
Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation added 4.5 percent after the company said it is currently undertaking a strategic review of its China logistics portfolio to boost operations.
Shares in Thai Beverage, a maker of wide range of branded beer and spirits in Thailand, lost 1 percent. Its unit unit BeerCo bought a 49 percent stake in Vietnamese management consultancy firm for 8 million Vietnamese dong (S$5,794).
About 2.9 billion shares worth S$2.7 billion changed hands, with losers outnumbering gainers 287 to 175.
