Trump eyes payroll tax relief in response to COVID-19 outbreak

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump said Monday that his administration will ask Congress to approve a possible payroll tax cut and provide "very substantial relief" for hourly workers and industries hit by the COVID-19 outbreak.

"We are going to be asking tomorrow -- we're seeing the Senate. We're going to be meeting with House Republicans ... and discussing a possible payroll tax cut or relief," Trump said at a White House press conference.

"We're also going to be talking about hourly wage earners getting help so that they can be in a position where they're not going to ever miss a paycheck," said the president.

Trump also said the administration would ask the Small Business Administration to aid small businesses, while working with companies in the airline and cruise industries to deal with the impact of COVID-19.

"This was something that we were thrown into and we're going to handle it," Trump said, adding that he and other White House officials will hold a press conference on Tuesday to discuss "major" economic proposals.

Trump's made the remarks after all three major US stock indexes plunged more than 7 percent on Monday, as fears fanned by the virus are mounting around the country, where more than 600 cases and over 20 deaths have been reported as of Monday, according to real-time data maintained by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

"What was glaringly missing from President Trump's press conference was how he is actually going to combat the spread of the coronavirus and keep the American people safe," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer tweeted after the briefing.

"It seems President Trump is more focused on the stock market" than addressing the epidemic, said Schumer.

In a joint statement with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Schumer called for expanded paid sick leave, enhanced unemployment insurance, clear protections for frontline workers and free coronavirus testing in response to the epidemic.

Last week, the US Federal Reserve lowered the target range for the federal funds rate by 50 basis points to 1 to 1.25 percent, its first emergency rate cut since the 2008 financial crisis, as the COVID-19 outbreak has posed "evolving risks" to economic activity.