Gamblers who bet on the loonie’s recovery will be sorely disappointed.

Over the course of the summer, the loonie has plummeted, closing on Tuesday below 75 cents (U.S.) for the first time since 2004. The loonie dropped nearly half a cent against its U.S. counterpart, falling 0.47 of a U.S. cent to end the day at 74.93.

It’s bad news for anyone planning an imminent vacation or study trip abroad, although it could be good news for Canada’s tourism industry.

Canadian trips south of the border tend to peter off when the loonie is weak — even a slight dip in the exchange rate can make a big difference when it comes hotel bills and shopping excursions. While many Canadians enjoy outlet shopping near Buffalo and Detroit, the deflated Canadian dollar eats up most savings.

The reverse is true for Americans travelling up north — everything is on sale. Statistics Canada reported that trips made by Americans to Canada reached a seven-year high in June, the most recent month for which data is available.

The loonie stayed below .75 cents (U.S.) for most of the 90s, reaching an all-time low of .62 cents (U.S.) in 2002. But it wasn’t that long ago that the Canadian dollar was on par with the greenback in 2011, and at times even higher. The currency began to slow down in late 2012.

When oil prices and the Canadian dollar started falling in late 2014, Ontario’s manufacturing sector was widely expected to step in to fill the economic gap left by a slowdown in Alberta’s oilfields.

Many observers, including the central bank, were optimistic that a weak loonie could lead to booming exports and spark a manufacturing rebound.

But CIBC economist Andrew Grantham told the Star it may be 2016 or later before the benefits of a devalued loonie are reaped.

Allan Small, senior investment adviser at Holliswealth, told the Canadian Press that the United States has been gaining ground on Canada as its diversified economy returns to growth and Canada’s resource-heavy markets look for a rebound in oil prices that is unlikely in the short term.

“Any way you measure it, we’re definitely lagging behind the U.S. and that’s why our dollar has fallen as low as it has,” Small said.

The Toronto stock market posted modest gains after a second straight day of volatility.

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The TSX/S&P composite index ended the session up 98.19 points at 13,339.76, after falling more than 420 points on Monday.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average closed down 204.91 points at 15,666.44 after plunging 588 points on Monday.

The broader S&P 500 index closed down 25.60 points to 1,867.61 after dropping more than 77 points the day before, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq gave back 19.76 points to 4,506.48 after the previous day's loss of almost 180 points.

On commodity markets, the October crude contract ended the day up $1.07 at $39.31 a barrel, while October natural gas rose 3.9 cents to $2.695 per thousand cubic feet. December gold was down $15.30 at $1,138.30 an ounce, while September copper advanced five cents to $2.31 a pound.

With files from Adam Mayers, Sunny Freeman, Robin Levinson King at the Star, and The Canadian Press.