Other data on Thursday showed factory activity in the mid-Atlantic region picked up this month, while home resales in November were the best in three years, indicating the economy retained some vigor early in the fourth quarter. 

However, a rise in first-time applications for unemployment aid last week suggested job growth remains modest. 

Gross domestic product expanded at a 3.1 percent annual rate in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said. It was the fastest pace since late 2011 and more than double the second quarter's 1.3 percent rate.

A month ago, the department said GDP grew at 2.7 percent pace during the July-September period. 

Millan Mulraine, a senior economist at TD Securities in New York, said the factors that boosted growth in the third quarter probably did not carry through the final three months of 2012.