A business lobby group says that the confidence in small businesses has remained weak. This is primarily because of the high Australian dollar and the likelihood that interest rates will be raised.

The index for business conditions was 43.8 points in the March, quarter which is only higher by 0.1 compared to the previous period. This was revealed in the small business survey by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry or ACCI. Figures below 50 indicate a contraction in the economic conditions of small businesses.

They had expected a better performance of 49.3 index points.