NEW YORK-Continuing with results seen in the third quarter, U.S. manufacturers remain upbeat and optimistic about the U.S. economy over the next 12 months, according to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Manufac-turing Barometer, a quarterly survey of executives in large, U.S.-based multinational industrial manufacturing businesses.
Nearly four-fifths, 78%, are optimistic about the U.S. economy's prospects over the next 12 months, up from 70% at the time of the third quarter assessment. Meanwhile, 60% are optimistic about the direction of the world economy, up from 46% at the third quarter