UK economy in double-dip recession

The Office for National Statistics said  A sharp fall in construction output was behind the surprise contraction, A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction. The economy shrank by 0.3% in the fourth quarter of 2011.BBC says it "adds to the picture that the economy is bumping along the bottom". It  said economic output was slightly smaller now than it was in the autumn of 2010.Today's figure is an early estimate and is subject to at least two further revisions in the coming months. It is compiled using 40% of the data gathered for later revisions. The UK economy was last in recession in 2009. (BBC)