Fed's Lockhart 'on the fence' over June hike: CNBC

(Reuters) - A top Federal Reserve official said on Thursday he was yet undecided about backing a U.S. interest rate rise next month even though he expects the economy to rebound from a weak first quarter of growth.

"I think we should keep the option open but I'm very much at the moment sort of on the fence and it will depend how the data come in," Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart said on CNBC of raising rates in mid-June, adding he was "optimistic" about U.S. economic growth through year end.

"The remaining three quarters of the year will be much better than the first quarter and therefore the first quarter is an anomaly, meaning it's either statistical noise or it's similar to the way we've seen first quarters in recent years," which have been weak, he said.

(Reporting by Jonathan Spicer; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

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