U.S. businesses slammed by pandemic but see some green shoots, Fed says

(Reuters) - U.S. businesses continued to be hammered by the effects of the novel coronavirus epidemic in the United States into the middle of May, a Federal Reserve report showed on Wednesday, and few expected a swift recovery despite some signs of hope.The sharp plunge in economic activity recounted in the U.S. central bank's latest temperature check of business activity across its 12 districts shed light on the depth of the economic pain generated by the virus, which has led to an..