The Canadian dollar gave back more than two cents on Wednesday amid falling commodity prices.

The loonie dropped 2.77 cents to close at 80.81 cents US.

North American stock markets also dove again as economic worries continued to weigh on investor sentiment.

The S&P/TSX composite index shed 501.28 points, finishing with a loss of more than five per cent at 8,922.72.

Tumbling oil prices pulled energy stocks lower on the TSX. Oil for December delivery lost $3.17 US a barrel to settle at $56.16 US, a 22-month low. The energy sub-index followed with a drop of more than seven per cent.

Financial stocks also suffered as the governments of Canada and the United States announced more plans to deal with the credit crunch. The Canadian government will buy up to $50 billion more in mortgage pools, while the U.S. government said it won't buy troubled assets from U.S. banks. The financial services sub-index dropped four per cent.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell by 411.31 points to end at 8,282.66. The S&P 500 dropped five per cent to 825 points, while Nasdaq eased more than 81 points to 1,499.21 points.