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The U.S. economy grew 2.2 percent in the fourth quarter, according to the Commerce Department's second estimate, slightly lower than the initial estimate primarily due to inventory accumulation.

The initial estimate was 2.6 percent growth.

"Consumer spending should remain strong while the lower energy costs free up households' disposable income and the labor market continues to improve," Curt Long, NAFCU's chief economist and director or research, said in a NAFCU Macro Data Flash report. "The economy continued to strengthen in 2014 with annual GDP growth of 2.4 percent."

Consumer spending increased 4.2 percent, residential investment increased 3.4 percent, nonresidential investment increased 4.8 percent and government spending decreased 1.8 percent, according to the second estimate. Inventory accumulation grew from $82.2 billion in the third quarter to $88.4 billion in the fourth. Net exports changed from -$431.4 billion to -$476.4 billion from the third quarter to the fourth.

Core personal consumption expenditure inflation (excluding food and energy), the Fed's preferred inflation metric, decreased from 1.4 percent in the third quarter to 1.1 percent in the fourth quarter. Overall PCE inflation retreated -0.4 percent in the fourth quarter; it was up 1.2 percent in the third quarter.