MEXICO CITY, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Mexico's economy shrank 0.2 percent in the third quarter compared with the previous three-month period, the first quarterly decline since recovery from the pandemic began, preliminary data from national statistics agency INEGI showed on Friday.
The seasonally-adjusted contraction in gross domestic product (GDP) compared with the consensus forecast from a Reuters poll that the economy would show growth of 0.1% over the period, and followed a surprise dip in August.
Economists said a resurgence in the coronavirus pandemic and global supply chain disruptions weighed on business activity over the summer.
The dent to growth is a setback to Mexico, which saw its sharpest slump since the 1930s Great Depression last year.
The biggest hit to the economy during the pandemic came in the second quarter of 2020. Since then, Mexico had posted four consecutive periods of quarterly growth, including an increase of 1.5% during the April-June period.
Compared with the same quarter a year earlier, Mexico's economy grew 4.6 percent in unadjusted terms, INEGI said.
Final third-quarter GDP figures for Latin America's second-biggest economy are due to be published on Nov. 25. (Reporting by Dave Graham; Editing by David Holmes)