Monday's reversal of fortunes gained on Friday dragged the Australian stock market to start low.

The September share price index contract on Tuesday was down 54 points at 4,392.

Overnight trading saw the Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) fell 141 points, or about 1.4 percent, to close. The S&P 500 (SPX) also went down 15 points, or 1.5 percent, while the Nasdaq (COMP) composite decreased 33 points, or 1.5 percent.

Hopes to ward off the impact of the slump in the US are being placed on the economic data to be released by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Tuesday. The RBA will share financial aggregates data for July.

Market sentiment is also expected to be affected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data, also set for release Tuesday. The ABS data for July covers issues such as retail trade, building approvals, and Australia's international investment position.

The ABS report will also carry Australia's balance of payments and government spending data for the second quarter.

The financial reports from Southern Cross Media Group Limited and Centro Property Group are also due. Even half year figures are expected from Petsec Energy Limited.

The Australian share market closed higher on Monday as local investors took the signal from the strong closing over Wall Street on Friday.