(Reuters) - U.S. companies borrowed 4% more to finance equipment investments in February compared to a year ago, industry body Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) said on Friday.

Companies signed up for new loans, leases and lines of credit worth $7.9 billion in February, down 15% from a month ago.

"Credit quality, while still elevated year over year, showed improvement with delinquencies slowly returning to normal levels and charge-offs moving in a positive direction," ELFA CEO Leigh Lytle said.

The Washington-based company, which reports economic activity for over $1-trillion equipment finance sector, said credit approvals for U.S. companies in February came in at 76%, unchanged from the preceding month.

Its non-profit affiliate, the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation, said its confidence index for March stood at 55.2, up from 51.7 for February and was at its highest level since April 2022. A reading above 50 indicates a positive business outlook.

ELFA's leasing and finance index is based on a 25-member survey, including Bank of America ( BAC ) and financing units of Caterpillar ( CAT ), Dell Technologies ( DELL ), Siemens AG, Canon Inc ( CAJFF ) and Volvo AB.