WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund on Thursday views recent U.S. inflation data as "overall higher than we would like to see" and is urging the Federal Reserve to stay cautious and remain data-dependent when deciding monetary policy, IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack said on Thursday.

"This is a reminder of course, that there are going to be bumps in the road as the U.S. brings inflation back to target and this reinforces the need for the Fed to be cautious and data dependent in deciding policy in the coming months," Kozack told a regular news briefing.

(Reporting by David Lawder)