SYDNEY, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans said on Tuesday he "could be fine" with raising U.S. interest rates in December, but he would prefer to see how the economy and inflation progressed before deciding.

Speaking to media after a speech in Sydney, Evans said the U.S. economy was on a solid footing and last week's payrolls report was a "pretty good number", so a hike in December would not be a surprise.

However, he cautioned that it might be better to allow inflation to rise closer to the Fed's 2 percent target before moving on policy.

(Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Richard Borsuk)