Mon Mar 23, 2015 8:21am EDT

The rising dollar is a sign of U.S. economic strength and a consideration as the Federal Reserve approaches an interest rate hike that should come this year, a top Fed official said on Bloomberg TV on Monday.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said June is still a viable option for the U.S. central bank to raise rates, though it doesn't necessarily have to move then. She did not repeat her call for a hike before mid-year.

The stronger dollar will soften U.S. export growth this year. "I take that into account when I do my forecasts," Mester said. But overall, she added, "it's a signal that the U.S. economy is strengthening."

The Fed's policy statement last week, which dropped a pledge to be "patient" in considering a tightening, "means that we're not going to necessarily move in June," Mester said. "But it gives us June as a viable option."

Investors are predicting the Fed will begin to lift rates around September given low inflation and cautious economic forecasts from Fed policymakers last week.

Mester, who does not have a vote on the Fed's policy committee this year, said the forecast adjustments were a nod to "transitory" factors, adding that the drop in oil prices is a positive for the economy.

Faltering growth, softer inflation numbers, or more destabilization of inflation expectations would cause the Fed to delay a rate hike, she said. But "I see the headwinds that we have been suffering through abating," she said.