European Council president Charles Michel said after a video conference of EU leaders on Thursday that the European Union is prioritising maintaining open borders for goods to flow and the hunt for a vaccine against the coronavirus.

Speaking after six hours of wrangling between the 27 member states, Michel said the leaders agreed to task the euro zone finance ministers to work out in two weeks details of a special credit line within the single-currency zone's bailout fund to support economies hit by coronavirus.

The fight over the scale and scope of the EU's economic response to the pandemics pits Italy and Spain - seeking far-reaching measures - against Germany and the Netherlands, demanding to spare resources for later, if need be.

Since the disease arrived in Europe after originating in China late last year, the EU has struggled to present a united front on economic stimulus, the sharing of medical equipment and safeguarding of essential supplies after countries across the continent tightened or closed their normally open borders to try and curb the spread of the respiratory disease.