Coronavirus: US Economy 'Maybe' Headed Towards Recession, Says Trump As Dow Loses 3,000 Pts

Coronavirus: US stocks suffered one of their biggest one-day losses ever on Monday, as Wall Street's Dow index closed down about 3,000 points over fears of a looming recession.

US President Donald Trump speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on March 16, 2020. - The first human trial to evaluate a candidate vaccine against the new coronavirus has begun in Seattle, US health officials said, raising hopes in the global fight against the disease. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

New Delhi: US President Donald Trump on Monday agreed that the economy of the country maybe heading towards a recession, as the cases of the pandemic novel coronavirus continue to surge across the globe. Trump asserted that the current focus of the country is not economy but dealing with the outbreak of the contagion. "It may be. I think there is tremendous pent up demand in terms of the stock market and economy. Once we are done with it, you are gonna see a tremendous surge," the US President said during a press conference. His remarks came in response to a question on whether the US economy is heading towards a recession. Trump's comments come as the business at restaurants and other places are being restricted by local officials in order to contain the spread of the virus. The Hill reported that the sudden shutdown of much of the consumer economy is likely to cause a surge in unemployment and a decline in consumer spending, according to economists, likely causing a recession. US stocks suffered one of their biggest one-day losses ever on Monday, as Wall Street's Dow index closed down about 3,000 points over fears of a looming recession. US stocks plummet, Dow loses nearly 3,000 pts over COVID-19 US equities plunged on Monday with Dow closing about 3,000 points lower, as panic selling continued over COVID-19 fallout. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2,997.10 points, or 12.93 per cent, to 20,188.52. The S&P 500 lost 324.89 points, or 11.98 per cent, to end at 2,386.13. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 970.28 points, or 12.32 per cent, to 6,904.59, Xinhua reported. All the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended significantly lower, with the real estate down 16.55 per cent, representing the worst-performing group. The major averages fell to their lows in late session after US President Donald Trump said the US economy "may be" headed for recession and that the COVID-19 outbreak could last for months. Trading was halted for 15 minutes on Wall Street shortly after the opening bell as a dip of 8.14 per cent on the benchmark S&P 500 triggered a circuit breaker. It was the third time that the circuit breaker, or trading halt, has been tipped since last week. (with inputs from agencies)