Britain's sluggish economy failed to grow in the July-to-September period, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Friday.

A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a fall in gross domestic product of 0.1% in the third quarter – potentially representing the start of a recession – but official data put the figure at 0%.

The economy grew by 0.2% in the month of September from August when growth was revised down to 0.1% from 0.2%.

The Reuters poll had pointed to no change in gross domestic product (GDP) in September.

In the quarter, output in Britain's huge services sector fell by 0.1%, industrial production was broadly flat and construction grew by 0.1%, the Office for National Statistics said.

The Bank of England (BoE) said last week it expected zero growth in Britain's economy next year but it kept its benchmark interest rates at a 15-year high as it continued to battle an inflation rate more than three times its 2% target. The BoE forecast a flat reading for growth in the third quarter.

Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt, responding to Friday's data, said high inflation remained the single biggest barrier to growth and he would announce plans to unlock investment and get people back into work in his Nov. 22 budget update statement.