Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Loretta Mester said the Fed should stick with its plan to tighten U.S. monetary policy even amid recent weak inflation numbers, Reuters reported.

Speaking at a community banker convention in Cincinnati, Mester said that weakening U.S. inflation is not a lasting trend, according to Reuters. She added that she still backs the Fed's goal of roughly three rate hikes per year, with one more expected in 2017.

Mester, who currently has no vote on the Federal Open Market Committee, also said the Fed should soon begin reducing its $4.5 trillion balance sheet. She said that the move would help draw out the expansion, not weaken it.

The Fed's go-to measure of inflation is currently at 1.5%, below its 2% annual target, according to Reuters.