Execs upbeat on economy

Middle market executives are clearly an upbeat bunch of business leaders — even in the face of an onslaught of potential problems.

How else to explain the results of a new survey from CIT Group, a financing and advisory firm for small businesses and middle market companies? The survey, for one, finds a majority of middle market executives, 55%, say their companies are better off today compared with a year ago.

There's also these nuggets: Nearly six out of 10 respondents, 59%, say they expect to increase the range of products and services they offer, while 55% anticipate an expansion into adjacent markets. Finally, almost half the respondents, 46%, expect to increase the size of their workforce.