Gold contracts closed lower Monday, with the precious metal hit by the prospects for higher interest rates – something that was hurting appetite for equities and precious metals alike in the short term. February gold GCG22, -0.13% GC00, -0.13% finished the session down $10.30, or 0.6%, to settle at $1,794.60 an ounce. Market participants also said that part of the downside for precious metals related to selling amid a lack of liquidity in thinly traded holiday markets, rather than purely a more bearish stance on the yellow metal. “The lack of upside impetus also suggests that a lot of today’s risk off moves are being driven by a lack of liquidity, more than any undue pessimism about future economic prospects,” wrote Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, in a daily note. Many global markets will be closed on Friday in observance of Christmas.