The US economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter as resilient consumer spending and AI-driven business investment more than offset the impact of higher oil prices stemming from the conflict in the Middle East. Gross domestic product increased at a 3.4% annualized rate last quarter, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis said in its advance estimate of third-quarter GDP on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP advancing at a 3.2% pace.