Study: Most Small Businesses Barely Staying Afloat

On average, the companies surveyed have just 27 days worth of cash reserves -- or money to cover expenses if inflows suddenly stopped -- according to the JPMorgan study, which analyzed 470 million transactions by 570,000 small business last year. Restaurants typically hold the smallest cash buffers, with just 16 days of reserves, while the real-estate sector boasts the biggest, at 47 days... Small businesses attempting to expand (or just keep their head above water) may find it difficult to build up reserves, with daily income outpacing expenditure by just $7, according to JPMorgan's study. ... The findings come as small-business optimism appears to be stagnating in the U.S., with the National Federation of Independent Business's (NFIB) Small Business Optimism Index dropping 0.2 percentage points to 94.4 in August. That's running below its 42-year average of 98.