Business executives optimistic about economy

Two-thirds of respondents expect economy to improve in next six months

U.S. business leaders are the most optimistic they have been since before the recession, according to Grant Thornton LLP’s most recent Business Optimism Index, a quarterly survey of U.S. business leaders.

Nearly two-thirds (64%) believe the U.S. economy will improve in the next six months, compared with 47% in November. Half of the business leaders (49%) report that their company plans to increase staff in the next six months (up from 43%), while only 10% plan to decrease staff (down from 15%) The Index itself is up 6.7 points to 69.7, the highest it has been since 2004.

Nearly nine in 10 of the business leaders (87%) are also optimistic about their own businesses, with only 13% reporting that they are pessimistic about their companies’ growth over the next six months.