As US enters recession, Trump open to another coronavirus relief package

US President Donald Trump is open to another economic relief package in response to the coronavirus pandemic and remains in favor of a payroll tax holiday, White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany said on Monday.

"There are several things he wants, a payroll tax holiday was one of them, because that directly advantages low-income workers," McEnany said at a media briefing.

In terms of the coronavirus, she said the United States was "heading in a positive direction."

McEnany said new cases of coronavirus have stabilized and many are being identified through proactive monitoring and testing for asymptomatic cases.

Last month, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed a $3 trillion (2.36 trillion pounds) economic aid bill, but Trump has promised to veto it if reaches his desk.

President Donald Trump stops to speaks with reporters on the South Lawn of the White House as he returns to the White House on Marine One in Washington. Photo: PTI

The US economy entered recession in February as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, a private economics research group said on Monday.

Meanwhile, the head of the World Health Organization warned that the coronavirus pandemic is worsening globally, even as the situation in Europe is improving.

At a press briefing on Monday, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that about 75 per cent of cases reported to the U.N. health agency on Sunday came from 10 countries in the Americas and South Asia. He noted that more than 100,000 cases have been reported on nine of the past 10 days and that the 136,000 cases reported Sunday was the biggest number so far.