Survey: Small businesses maintain strength

Marketwired

GLENVIEW - Only 1 in 10 small business owners are operating with debt or reducing staff, according to the January 2016 SurePayroll Small Business Scorecard.

This despite optimism about the economy dropping significantly from a year ago, with only 68 percent of small business owners saying they're optimistic, compared to 78 percent a year ago.

The majority of small businesses (52 have extra cash on hand for new opportunities or emergencies should they arise. Another 38 percent said they do not have extra cash, though they are not in debt. Nearly 9 in 10 said they are either happy with their current profitability or growing, according to the survey.

The impact of a steep sell-off on Wall St. in January seems to be having a limited impact on small businesses, with only 37 percent saying the volatility worries them about business for the rest of the year.

"Our small business customers for the most part tell us they only worry about the things they can control, and volatility in the market is to be expected," said SurePayroll General Manager Andy Roe. "They're really

focused on making their businesses more efficient to increase profits, regardless of what's happening in the broader economy."