MADRID, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Spain’s economic recovery from its worst-ever contraction likely halted in the last three months of this year as a result of new restrictions imposed to curb the COVID-19 resurgence, the Bank of Spain said in a report on Friday. Its central projected scenario showed gross domestic product falling 0.8% in the fourth quarter from the previous three-month period. Its forecast ranged from a 3% contraction to a 0.6% expansion. “The fourth quarter is worse than we expected in September,” Oscar Arce, the Central Bank’s chief economist told reporters on Friday. “The intensity of the second (COVID-19) wave surprised us, it was stronger than what we expected in September.” The central bank also projected an economic slump of between 10.7% and 11.6% for the whole of this year, narrowing its forecast range from 10.5%-12.6% predicted in September, while also expecting a slightly higher growth of 4.2%-8.6% next year after its previous range of 4.1%-7.3%.