New Delhi, Jul 25 (IANS): The confidence of small and medium enterprises(SMEs)in India is on the rise with many firms recording higher sales and increased capacity utilisation, says a survey by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The overall business confidence index (BCI) compiled by CII for SMEs for the July-Sep 2010 stood at 65.6 on a scale of 0-100, the industry lobby said in a statement.

The quarterly outlook, which was based on a list of 14 indicators, showed that the services segment of the SMEs have a BCI of 66.1, while that of industrial SMEs stood at 65.6.

The SMEs are, however, wary of the rise in input prices.

"By gauging the mood of the SMEs in advance, the confidence index will provide an outlook for the forthcoming quarter and facilitate the necessary policy interventions, when required," said Chandrajit Banerjee, CII director general.

The survey found the appetite of the SME for credit growing even in the wake of increasing credit cost.