Gross domestic product increased by 0.7% in the first quarter, compared to a growth of 0.6% initially estimated, according to fresh data from the National Statistics Institute (INS).
A quarter earlier, the Romanian economy grew a modest 0.1%.
Compared with the first quarter of 2010, real-term GDP increased by 1.7% in January to March. Preliminary data indicated an annual growth of 1.6%.
Industry had a positive contribution of 10.1% to the first-quarter GDP, while retail, transport and telecommunications each contributed 1.1% to the economic growth.
On the other hand, services had a negative contribution of 6.1% during the first three months, while activity in the financial and real estate sectors declined by 3.2%. Construction works fell 2.4% in the first quarter from the year-earlier period.
Domestic demand inched down 0.5 percentage points in January to March, mostly due to a 3% decline in final consumption. Gross capital formation was down 2.2% on the year in the first quarter.
However, net exports rose 23.6% in the first three months from the same period of 2010, outpacing imports, which increased by 15.4% on the year, INS data showed.
Romanian authorities estimate an economic increase of 1.5% in 2011, broadly fueled by exports, after a decline of 1.3% in the previous year.
The economy slipped into recession in the second half of 2008 and remained in negative territory until the last quarter of 2010, with a few exceptions when it posted quarterly growths.