However, the rises have not been able to recover drops from December and January. Perhaps the revival was below managers' expectations, because their confidence in future activity has fallen since the previous month.

The volume of production rose to 55 points, compared with 44 in December and 46 in January when the industry was in contraction. If we mitigate volatility by calculating an average between January and February, we notice that the activity does not exceed 50.5 points, which means that in the first two months of 2018 the industry was below the growth area. Stocks rose from 43 to 47 and are still in shrinkage under 50 points.

New orders rose slightly from 45 to 54, but the media said the demand remained contracted in the first two months. Export orders rose sharply from 53 in January to 59 in February. Export intensification is a strong force and shows how dependent the revival of the entire industry is on exports made by only a part of the industrial firms. Imports of raw materials have climbed somewhat slower, from 56 to 59 and are approaching the maximum score of 61 points in the last 8 months.
 
The number of employees remained at 50 points, signaling that hiring and dismissals remain in balance, meaning companies do not employ more than the number of people who are out of business. (source: capital.ro)