BEIJING - China's business climate index, a major measure of the macro-economic outlook, continued to fall in the fourth quarter of 2011, and entrepreneur confidence further weakened over the previous quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Friday.

The quarterly business climate index, based on a survey of about 20,000 Chinese firms, dropped 5.2 points from the previous quarter to 128.2 in the fourth quarter, the NBS said in a statement on its website.

The index ranges from zero to 200. A reading above 100 shows economic expansion, while a reading below 100 indicates contraction.

Meanwhile, the entrepreneur confidence index, a gauge of the views and opinions of the country's entrepreneurs, fell 7.4 points to 122 in the last quarter of 2011, the NBS said.

The business climate index for the real estate sector declined for four consecutive quarters, dropping sharply by 12.2 points to 107.2 in the October-December period as the government stepped up efforts to rein in soaring housing prices and crack down on speculation.

Entrepreneur confidence in the real estate sector slid for seven consecutive quarters, plunging 18.4 points to 81.5 in the fourth quarter after falling below the boom-or-bust line of 100 in the third quarter of 2011.