The GDP of the 17-nation eurozone fell by 0.1 percent during the third quarter of 2012 from the previous three months, figures from the statistical office of the European Union (EU) showed on Thursday.
According to flash estimates published by Eurostat, the GDP in the wider 27-member EU, meanwhile, rose by 0.1 percent. In the April-June period, the eurozone and the EU both saw their economic output contract by 0.2 percent.
This means the eurozone has officially fallen into technical recession, which is defined by two consecutive quarters of decline, though probably a short-lived one.
The European Commission has forecast the eurozone economy could return to positive growth in 2013.
Year on year, the seasonally adjusted GDP fell by 0.6 percent and 0.4 percent respectively in the eurozone and the EU.
Among member states of the EU, Latvia and Estonia saw the highest quarterly growth of 1.7 percent, while Latvia saw the highest year-on-year growth of 5.3 percent.
Germany's third-quarter GDP growth was 0.2 percent compared with the second quarter, down from 0.3 percent between April and June. France also saw its economy swing back to growth of 0.2 percent after contracting 0.1 percent in the second quarter./.