Facebook has officially launched its Trending feature for roll-out locally, in the US, UK, Canada and India.

In a move that echoes Twitter, the new feature will show users the topics and conversations that are spiking in popularity.

Trending's roll-out comes after Facebook announced the expiration date for its Sponsored Stories, a move one social media expert said will cost brands' one of their "most powerful" social ad products.

The Trending bar will appear to the right of the News Feed and is personalised.

“The list is personalized, including topics based on things you’re interested in and what is trending across Facebook overall,” Chris Struhar, engineering manager Facebook, said in the announcement.

Each topic will in the Trending bar will feature a headline to explain it and why it is trending.

“Trending is currently rolling out on web in select countries and we are going to continue to test on mobile. As with other features, expect continuous improvements from us over time,” Struhar said.

Trending has been tested since last year and follows the introduction of hashtags, another Twitter feature, to Facebook last year.