Singapore stocks ended little changed on Monday, as lenders such as DBS Group Holdings declined but easing geopolitical tensions over North Korea's nuclear programme capped losses.
Asian shares gained after North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un decided to hold a party over the weekend rather than launch another missile.
South Korea's main index added 0.8 percent, while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.4 percent.
Pyongyang held a massive celebration to congratulate the nuclear scientists and technicians who steered the country's sixth and largest nuclear test a week earlier, Reuters reported.
The Straits Times Index closed unchanged at 3,228. It ended 0.02 percent higher on Friday, taking the year-to-date performance to about 12 percent.
Among the lenders, United Overseas Bank lost 0.7 percent and DBS Group Holdings dropped 0.2 percent but Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp rose 0.4 percent.
TEE International, which provides mechanical and electrical engineering services, said it formed a strategic alliance with Advancer Global, which provides security services, pest control, and cleaning and stewarding services to its customers. The stock plunged 3.4 percent.
Gainers included Singapore-based steel maker BRC Asia, which jumped 6 percent after receiving a conditional cash offer from Esteel Enterprise at a price of 92.5 Singapore cents a share.
Technology firm Trek 2000 International climbed as much as 56 percent on Monday after its shares resumed trading on the Singapore Exchange.
About 1.4 billion shares worth S$884 million changed hands, with gainers outnumbering losers 214 to 191.
