U.S. officials talk down coronavirus market panic, tout economic strength

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference on the coronavirus outbreak with U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Robert Redfield and U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams at the White House in Washington, U.S., February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senior officials in President Donald Trump's administration on Sunday tried to calm market panic that the coronavirus could cause a global recession, saying the U.S. public had over-reacted and that stocks would rebound due to the American economy's underlying strength.

The S&P 500 index tumbled 11.5% last week as the virus accelerated beyond China's borders, the worst weekly drop since the 2008 global financial crisis. Roughly $4 trillion has been wiped off the value of U.S. stocks.