French business leaders were more optimistic about business climate in March with the monthly sentiment indicator rising by one point to 95, the national statistics bureau Insee said Tuesday.

The indicator inched up thanks to the positive performance of retail trade and wholesale business but was still below its long term average of 100 points.

Both activities increased by two points to 97 and 99 points respectively, while manufacturers' sentiment about industry sector was stable but gained one point in services and building businesses, the report's data showed.

Forecasting a slight improvement in economic activities in the short term, the French central bank Banque de France expected the country's gross domestic product (GDP) to grow by 0.2 percent during the first three months of the year. Endi