Fresh off its worst session since August 2011, Singapore's Straits Times Index (STI) managed to overturn an early 0.7 per cent loss to trade higher for most of yesterday's session.
However, it closed 3.36 points or 0.11 per cent lower at 3,007.72 after a late dip just before the closing.
Even though the STI extended its losing streak to four, investors in the city state were buoyed by hopes of a US Federal Reserve rate cut this month after its chair Jerome Powell said the Covid-19 outbreak is posing evolving risks to economic activity.
Moods were also lifted after Chinese small and medium-sized firms surveyed for the Caixin Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) felt that business confidence was rising.
While the private survey reading of 40.3 was the lowest since the measure was launched in 2004, it was better than the official PMI readings last Saturday.
Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, equity benchmarks were mixed. Like Singapore, Australia, Malaysia and Taiwan notched up losses.
Japan, China, Hong Kong and South Korea notched up gains. China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped 90.63 points or 3.2 per cent to 2,970.93.
Trading volume in Singapore was 1.61 billion securities, 36 per cent over last year's daily average. Total turnover came to $1.91 billion, 80 per cent over last year's intraday mean.
Advancers outpaced decliners 254 to 236. Thirteen of the blue-chip index's 30 components ended in the red.
The local banks were lower. DBS shares dipped 0.3 per cent to $24.05, OCBC Bank edged down 0.2 per cent to $10.58 and United Overseas Bank closed at $24.24, down 1 per cent.
Singtel shares closed 0.7 per cent down at $2.98 after the telco announced a collaboration with Nokia to develop and trial 5G network slicing capabilities. Network slicing is a 5G feature where multiple virtual networks can be created atop one physical network.
Among listed technology manufacturers, Venture Corp advanced 2.3 per cent to $16.83. OCBC Investment Research noted that Venture could potentially benefit from customers seeking alternative manufacturing partners that possess facilities outside China "for supply chain resilience and diversity".
Among property firms, Bukit Sembawang Estates added 0.5 per cent to $4.50. It said yesterday that the final phase of its Luxus Hills development in the Seletar Hills estate has been fully sold.
