Washington | President Donald Trump has ordered an unprecedented 30-day ban on most travel from Europe, excluding the UK and US permanent residents among a few other nationalities, to stymie the spread of "foreign" coronavirus into the US.

In an historic prime-time address to the nation on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) that sent financial markets into a tailspin, Mr Trump blamed Europe for failing to impose travel restrictions early enough on China, where he said it originated.