Recovery continues at "half speed"

Nearly a third of Florida's small business owners cite weak sales as the basis for the pessimism about their overall prospects, according to the PNC Economic Outlook survey.

A release announcing the survey's findings explained that the results supported PNC's prediction that the United States would experience a “half speed” recovery through 2010, with 48% of survey respondents expecting noticeable improvement to their businesses to take more than a year.

Indeed, 13% of Florida business owners said they expected to reduce their workforces, with 69% saying they would keep employment steady. And 91% of respondents said they had not yet noticed a significant improvement in the U.S. economy.