Singapore stocks ended little changed on Tuesday, led by lenders such as OCBC and DBS Bank but caution prevailed ahead of a major tax overhual in the United States.
European stocks struggled for traction following a mixed session in Asian markets.
In the U.S., House and Senate lawmakers are poised to begin working on compromise tax-overhaul legislation -- a key step in their drive to send a bill with tax cuts for corporations and individuals to President Donald Trump by the end of the year.
The Straits Times Index ended down 0.01 percent or 0.41 point at 3,438. It ended 0.32 percent lower on Monday, taking the year-to-date performance to about 19 percent.
United Overseas Bank fell 0.2 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking was up 0.9 percent while DBS Group Holdings gained 0.6 percent.
Crane rental company MS Holdings jumped 26 percent after saying it is currently in preliminary discussions with several parties to explore a potential transaction.
Hengxin Technology, a maker of radio frequency coxial cables series for mobile communications, ended unchanged at S$0.33 after the company said it would delist from the Singapore Exchange from February 5.
About 1.7 billion shares worth S$1 billion changed hands, with losers outnumbering gainers 286 to 175.
