Singapore shares hit a new 4-year peak in early trade on Tuesday before losing ground to profit-taking in recent index-heavy gainers like Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel). SingTel fell about 0.8 percent to S$2.37, after about 13 million shares traded, but the stock was still above a 3-week low of S$2.30 hit on November 8.
The Straits Times Index ended down 2.04 points, or 0.1 percent, at 2,036.42. Early on it hit a peak of 2,045.74, its highest since November 2000, as the market resumed trade after a long weekend with Monday closed for a holiday.
The index had risen by about one percent last week with consecutive gains in the last three sessions.
In the broader market, losers led gainers 232 to 143 in brisk turnover of 666 million shares.
Shares of Swissco International Ltd, a marine logistics and repair services provider, made their debut at 30 Singapore cents a share, up 6.6 percent compared with its initial public offering price of 28 cents.
Swissco later pulled back and ended at 26.5 cents. It was among the most active stocks with 29 million shares changing hands.
Conglomerate Fraser and Neave fell 2.8 percent to S$14.10 after it reported late on Friday a 37 percent drop in fourth-quarter net profit. Before the results on Friday, Fraser and Neave had hit a 3-month closing high of S$14.50.
Gainers were led by CapitaLand Ltd which rose as much as 3.5 percent to a 32-month high of S$2.09 before pulling back S$2.05. A
Over eight million shares of CapitaLand were traded on what dealers said was hope for gains from the firm's ventures in China and plans for a China real estate investment trust.
Singapore Airlines rose 0.9 percent to S$11.00 with a turnover of almost two million shares responding to the recent fall in oil prices to their weakest levels in about two months.
China Aviation Oil fell 6.7 percent to S$1.26. Dealers said China Aviation fell after the firm's quarterly result, issued late on Friday, confirmed market talk about its trading losses.
The firm, a major supplier of jet fuel to China, posted a 15 percent decline in its third quarter net profit and said lower profit was due to weak contributions by the company's international oil trading division.
China Aviation shares are up 52 percent year-to-date, but have lost about a quarter of their value since October when they hit a 5-month high of S$1.72.