The six straight quarters of economic contraction makes the current recession the longest since the quarterly GDP figures were tracked in 1955, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported Friday. The figure came in well below estimates. Economists had expected growth of about 0.2 percent, despite slow retail sales and a decline in industrial output of 2.5 percent in August.

The GDP is 5.9 percent below its pre-recession high, the BBC said.

James Knightly at consulting firm ING said the the official numbers were "awful with no positive news."

"This clearly suggests that the likelihood of an expansion in quantitative easing by $82 billion or so over the next quarter is rising, although (it) is not a foregone conclusion."

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