Mid-market executives are accelerating strategic business investments and displaying increased optimism despite a harsh winter that took a toll on growth for U.S. businesses, according to the findings of Deloitte's Mid-market perspectives: 2014 report on America's economic engine.

As the economy shows signs of strength again, mid-market executives report more confidence in growth prospects. In fact, 39% of the executives believe the economy will grow 2% to 3.5% over the next 12 months, compared to 23% a year ago. Their optimism also extends to their outlook on the job market, as the majority (77%) believes that the unemployment rate will either go down or remain the same during the next 12 months. As such, significantly fewer respondents (41%) say the uncertain economic outlook is an obstacle to their company's growth, compared to a year ago (59%).

Moreover, the positive outlook of mid-market executives is translating to increases in capital investments. A higher number of mid-market executives (38%) report they are increasing capital investments, compared to last year (32%) and only 23% of respondents say that their company is deferring major investments due to uncertainty, down from 43% a year ago.

"The economic ups and downs since the Great Recession caused many mid-market executives to postpone strategic decisions and scale back investments," said Tom McGee, deputy chief executive officer, Deloitte LLP. "But over the past year, we've seen that hesitancy begin to shift. Our survey results show that mid-market executives are regaining the confidence to increase their investing for growth once again."

Flush with cash and buoyed with historically low interest rates, mid-market executives are investing in hiring and technology in an effort to promote growth. Forty-eight percent rank technology investments as one of their top three investment priorities.

To read the full report, click here.