A barrel of crude oil dipped below 30 dollars U-S for the first time in nearly two weeks – bringing more dramatic losses to North American markets.

Oil fell $1.74 to $29.88 U-S a barrel – slipping beneath the 30-dollar mark for the first time since January 21st.

The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S*P/TSX index fell 232.11 points to 12,442.26. The index has lost 379.87 points over the first two days of February.

And the Canadian dollar was off exactly half a cent – at 71.29 cents U-S.

New York was also on the run – with the Dow Jones industrial average plummeting 295.64 points at 16,153.54.

The Nasdaq lost 103.42 points to 4,516.95.

Gold dropped 80 cents – to $1,127.20 U-S an ounce.