The US economy lost some momentum in the final three months of last year as a surge in consumer spending was offset by weakness in other areas.

The Commerce Department said Friday gross domestic product expanded by 2.6 percent between October and December, down from 5 percent in the third quarter and 4.6 percent in the second.

In the same period, consumers pushed up spending by the fastest rate in nearly nine years, but industrial output, investment, trade and government spending weakened tangibly.

2015 a breakout year?

For the whole of 2014, the US economy expanded by 2.4 percent, a pickup from the 2.2 percent logged in the previous year.

Looking ahead, economists believe 2015 will see stronger growth again, backed by considerable employment gains and falling oil and gas prices.

"We are seeing a number of positive developments," Moody's analytics economist Mark Zandi told AP news agency. "Businesses are hiring aggressively and people have more money to spend."

hg/bk (AP, Reuters, AFP)