The local share market has taken another tumble, joining the sell-off seen on global markets as investor sentiment sours.
The All Ordinaries index closed down by 1.2 per cent at 5,661 points, while the benchmark ASX 200 index fell by 68 points to 5,589 — escaping the heavier falls seen on Wall Street.
Market analysts believe a "Santa rally" in the last two weeks of 2018 is looking increasingly unlikely.
"It will be quite challenging — we really don't have macroeconomic news … that will support the market for the next couple of weeks," Tribeca Investment Partners portfolio manager Jun Bei Liu said.
"Unless the US and China come out with a great deal to be signed in the next few days, I can't see anything that will get investors excited into Christmas."
The Australia market's drop follows a volatile session on Wall Street overnight, as it continues to descend further into correction territory.
The Dow Jones index shed 508 points and the benchmark S&P 500 fell to a 14-month low.
Investors are on edge about a potential recession in the United States, and the Federal Reserve's widely expected interest rate hike on Wednesday afternoon (New York time).
"Investors have also taken a negative view on the growth outlook for markets in 2019, hence the sharp sell-off," Ms Liu said.
Most sectors of the Australian share market finished weaker, led by a fall in the energy sector (-2.9pc).
ANZ (-3pc), NAB (-1.8pc), Westpac (-1.3pc) and Commonwealth Bank (-1pc) were among the biggest drags on the local bourse.
The telco sector was the only part of the market to rise this session, with gains for TPG (+3.7pc) and Vocus (+3.3pc).
The Australian dollar had risen to 71.9 US cents at 4.45pm (AEDT).
