London, Dec 22 (IANS): Fears that the UK has fallen into recession have been heightened after official figures were revised to show that the economy shrank slightly in the July to September period, a media report said.

The assessment that gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.1 per cent in the third quarter – down from the previous estimate of no growth – will be a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has promised to get the economy growing as one of his fives pledges to voters before an expected general elections next year, The Guardian reported.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said a poorer than previously assessed performance by small companies, film production, engineering and design and telecommunication and the IT sector accounted for much of the revision.

GDP for the second quarter was also revised down to zero growth, from a previous estimate of 0.2 per cent expansion, to leave the economy broadly flat over the year.

An economy is considered to be in a technical recession after two consecutive quarters of contraction in GDP, and a further contraction in the fourth quarter would push the UK into that category, The Guardian reported.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said he believed the economy is poised to rebound.

“The medium-term outlook for the UK economy is far more optimistic than these numbers suggest."