Singapore stocks close weaker on China selloff, Wall Street jitters

A 200-point plunge in the Dow Jones Industrial Average's futures contract on Tuesday reminded players that may be markets have not bottomed yet and dragged the Straits Times Index 38.67 points or 1.3 per cent down to 2,882.77.

Turnover was in line with recent totals at 1.8 billion units worth S$1.1 billion and excluding warrants there were 130 rises versus 300 falls. Of the dollar total, S$793 million or 72 per cent was done in the 30 STI components.

Adding to the pressure was renewed weakness in China and Hong Kong, where large price falls and a surge in volatility have marked trading over the past three weeks.

This came after news that manufacturing has continued to weaken - the official purchasing manager's index for August fell to 49.7 from 50 in July, its lowest in three years.