Gold prices pulled back on Monday as investors positioned themselves ahead of an expected U.S. interest rate increase this week.

The precious metal fell 0.4% to $1,153.31 a troy ounce in midmorning trade in London. Other precious metals were mixed.

The prospect of the U.S. Federal Reserve hiking interest rates on Wednesday continued to hit investor sentiment in gold, which doesn't bear interest and struggles to compete when rates rise, says Dow Jones.

Traders in the market for fed-funds futures, derivatives used to bet on the timing of Fed interest-rate decisions, reflect a 100% probability of a rate rise this week, according to CME Group.