The Australian sharemarket was dragged almost two per cent lower after the release of weak manufacturing figures from China.
At 1615 AEDT, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was 82 points, or 1.98 per cent, lower at 4,051, while the broader All Ordinaries index was 78.4 points, or 1.86 per cent, lower at 4,125.8
The December share price index futures contract was 90 points weaker at 4,062, with 36,780 contracts traded.
Resources and financial stocks suffered the heaviest losses, with falls of between two and 3.5 per cent.
Cameron Securities adviser Peter Cameron said the weakness was caused by softer Chinese manufacturing data.
“That’s all we can put it down to,” Mr Cameron said.
“All of the Chinese markets were down and we just followed suit.”
Market watchers were hoping for a rebound in afternoon trade.
“We’ve been waiting for a bounce for a number of days and it hasn’t happened,” Mr Cameron said.
Weakness had continued in Europe, the US and now Asia.
“There’s no good news anywhere.”
Chinese manufacturers reported their sharpest fall in output since March 2009, as US and European economic woes hit demand.
The preliminary HSBC purchasing managers’ index (PMI) dropped to 48 in November, compared with 51 the previous month.
A reading above 50 indicates the sector is expanding, while a reading below 50 suggests a contraction.
On the local market at 1615 AEDT, global miner BHP Billiton was down $1.09, or 3.06 per cent, at $34.51, and Rio Tinto had slid $2.20, or 3.41 per cent at $62.30.
Canadian regulators have cleared mining giant Rio Tinto’s $C654 million ($A641.715 million) for junior uranium explorer Hathor Exploration.
Among the major banks, National Australia Bank had retreated 76 cents, or 3.29 per cent, to $22.37, Westpac lost 53 cents, or 2.6 per cent, to close at $19.83, ANZ had lost 44 cents, or 2.25 per cent, at $19.10, and Commonwealth Bank was $1.13 cents lower at $46.27.
Property developer Stockland was four cents higher at $3.14 after it affirmed its full-year guidance despite soft sales in the first two months of the financial year.
Virgin Australia says underlying profit before tax in the first three months of 2011/12 was higher than the prior corresponding period, despite higher fuel costs.
Shares in the airline were 0.5 cents lower at 36.5 cents.
Programmed Maintenance Services was 1.5 cents higher at $2.01 after it returned to first-half profitability and forecast earnings growth in all of its divisions.
National turnover at 1615 AEDT was 1.96 billion shares worth $4.64 billion, with 303 stocks down, 682 up and 384 unchanged.
The spot price of gold was US$1700.38, up $17.34 from Tuesday’s close of $US1,683.04.
On Wall Street on Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 53.59 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 11,493.7.
Markets around the world are under pressure on several fronts.
European powers France and Germany are miles apart over allowing the European Central Bank to rescue the eurozone from a debt crisis threatening to engulf major economies.
Also, Spain’s borrowing costs have soared to 14-year highs, increasing pressure for quick economic reform.
The US economy has grown more slowly than the government earlier estimated because businesses cut back more sharply on the restocking of shelves.
