The index stood at -2 points in March, up from -14 points in December

The measure of businesses' assessment of the current situation climbed to -21 points in March from -32 points in December.

The gauge of their expectations rose to 18 points from 4 points during the period.

The measure of big companies' assessments of the current situation rose to 9 points in March from -28 points in December. The same measure for small businesses edged up to -29 points from -30 points during the period.

Big companies were using 97% of capacity in March, while small companies were using 87% and microbusinesses were using 70%.

Between 1,400 and 2,400 companies have participated in the MNB's monthly surveys.