The U.S. economy suffered its worst performance for five years in the first quarter of 2014, latest figures show, according to BBC News.

The economy shrank at an annualized rate of 2.9% in the first three months of the year, the third estimate from the U.S. Commerce Department showed.

This was worse than the previous estimate of a 1% contraction, and also worse than economists' expectations for a fall in GDP of 1.7%.

The unusually cold weather in the quarter has been blamed for the fall.

The gap between the second and third estimates of U.S. growth for the quarter is the largest on record.

The latest revision came as a result of a weaker pace of healthcare spending than previously assumed, which caused a downgrading of the consumer spending estimate.

Trade was also a bigger drag on the economy than previously thought.

Despite the worse-than-expected figures, more recent unemployment, manufacturing and service sector data all point to a sharp turnaround in the second quarter.