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 Gold slipped on Monday en route to its seventh straight monthly decline, hurt by a stronger dollar and elevated U.S. bond yields, while markets looked forward to this week's Federal Reserve meeting for more clarity on its rate-hike path.

Spot gold fell 0.2% to $1,638.15 per ounce by 0926 GMT, and down 1.3% for the month.

U.S. gold futures eased 0.2% to $1,641.10.

Markets are likely to be in a wait-and-see mode until the Fed's decision and with rate increases largely priced in, it will take an unexpectedly smaller or larger move to impact markets, said Rupert Rowling, an analyst at Kinesis Money.

"But with inflation still stubbornly high and the U.S. jobs market holding up relatively well so far, the U.S. central bank may have sufficient breathing space to continue its hawkish stance for a while longer yet," Rowling added.

Making gold less appealing for other currency holders, the dollar index rose 0.3% higher, while the benchmark 10-year Treasury yields stayed above the 4% threshold.

The Fed is widely expected to deliver a fourth straight 75 basis-point increase at Nov. 1-2 policy meeting and U.S. rate hikes increase the opportunity cost of holding zero-yielding bullion.

"Higher interest rates and a stronger dollar continue to be headwinds for gold, with market participants closely watching what the Fed will decide this week on the policy rate," UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said.

If the Fed continues to hike at the coming meetings, expect more downside for the yellow metal by year-end, Staunovo added.

Data on Friday showed underlying inflation pressures continued to bubble paring expectations of a Fed slowdown.

Spot silver dropped 0.8% to $19.07 per ounce.

Platinum fell 1.65% to $929.70 per ounce, but was headed for its biggest monthly gain since February 2021.

Palladium rose 0.6% to $1,910.50 per ounce, but was set for its biggest monthly drop since May.