Donald Trump has urged people to stop panic buying amid the coronavirus crisis, saying the nation is not going to run out of supplies.

Amid reports from around the nation of empty grocery store shelves, the president took the slightly unusual step of urging people to buy a little less.

He said he had been speaking to the CEOs of the major supermarket companies and had been assured they would be staying open around the clock.

“They’ve been there for 24 hours around the clock, keeping their stores stocked,” he said.

He said senior officials from firms such as Walmart had said people were buying three to five times the usual amount. It was comparable to Christmas.

He added: “Relax. You’re doing great. There’s no need for anybody in the country to hoard essential food supplies, they said to me. Have a nice dinner, relax. because there’s plenty. You don’t have to buy the quantities, because it’s hard to refill.”

Mr Trump’s unscheduled appearance at a press briefing by vice president Mike Pence on measures being taken by the federal task force he is heading to tackle the threat from Covid-19, came as the Federal Reserve took emergency action, slashing its benchmark interest rate by a full percentage point to nearly zero and announcing it would purchase more Treasury securities to encourage lending to try to offset the impact of the outbreak.

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The central bank said the effects of the outbreak will weigh on economic activity in the near term and pose risks to the economic outlook. The central bank said it will keep rates at nearly zero until it feels confident the economy has weathered recent events.

Mr Trump, who has frequently criticised the central bank and its leadership, said the decision had made him “very happy”.

Additional reporting by Associated Press