Small-business owners have record high confidence in economy.

Optimism among business owners about the U.S. economy and the outlook for their own businesses has reached record levels, according to the PNC Economic Outlook, a biannual telephone survey of small- and medium-sized business owners.

Among the survey's findings:

* 88 percent are optimistic about the near-term outlook on the national economy, up from 71 percent in the fall and 56 percent last spring.

* 89 percent are optimistic about their local...