WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve board member Lael Brainard indicated Monday that she's in no hurry to raise interest rates, and Wall Street greeted her comments with relief.

In a speech in Chicago, Brainard said that the risk that higher rates will damage a fragile economy exceeds the risk that lower rates will ignite inflation. Economic weakness “counsels prudence,” she said.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up more than 1 percent Monday after Brainard's speech.

Financial markets had been on edge after several Fed officials in recent days signaled a willingness to discuss a rate hike at their meeting next week. Low rates have fueled a strong stock market rally. Until the recent comments, investors had been expecting the Fed to delay a rate increase until December or later.

Brainard is among the Fed's top “doves,” who believe the central bank should be cautious about raising rates. Had she signaled a change of heart, it might have convinced investors that a hike was coming next week, especially after another dove, Boston Fed chief Eric Rosengren, said on Friday that there's case for higher rates.

Brainard is seen as a contender for a top job in a potential Hillary Clinton administration.

The Fed surfaced as a campaign issue Monday when GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump accused Fed Chair Janet Yellen of holding rates “artificially low” to keep the economy rolling and benefit President Barack Obama. “She should be ashamed,” Trump said on CNBC.

Asked about Trump's remarks, Brainard said Congress created the Fed to be independent of the executive branch and gave it the clear objectives of pursuing maximum employment and price stability.