BEIJING - Most of China's stock index futures closed lower Sept 19.

The contract for September added 0.16 percent from the previous trading day to 2,737 points.

The October contract, the most actively traded, tumbled 2.42 percent to close at 2,668.6 points. The December contract slid 2.21 percent to 2,687.4 points, while the March contract for 2012 fell 2.17 percent to finish at 2,714.2 points.

The stock-index contracts, agreements to buy or sell the Hushen 300 Index at a preset value on an agreed date, are designed to allow investors to bet on and profit from both gains and declines in the market.

The index futures was launched at the China Financial Futures Exchange (CFFEX) and started trading from April 16, 2010. The CFFEX has set the base value for all the four contracts at 3,399 points.