The U.S. economy contracted for a second straight quarter between April and June this year, government data showed Thursday, fueling market fears that the economy was already in recession.

The gross domestic product declined at an annual rate of 0.9 percent in the second quarter, following a bigger drop in the first three months of the year, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast growth rebounding at a rate of 0.5 percent.

Two quarters of straight negative growth meet the standard definition of a recession.