Dow Jones Newswires (05/24/12) Kristin Jones

Many small businesses plan to hire more people, according to a Capital One Small Business Barometer survey for the first quarter of 2012. Small businesses are showing signs of recovery after a difficult 2011, the survey reports, with many reporting increased liquidity and saying they plan to invest in growth. Approximately 15% of the small businesses across the country said they have job openings they are unable to fill. Companies serving the government, utilities, and mining sectors are most likely to have job openings they cannot fill. Roughly 34% of small businesses plan to hire more employees over the next six months, compared with 27% last quarter and 30% in the year-ago quarter.