Gold prices closed higher on Thursday, buoyed by a repricing of US monetary policy expectations following a disappointing jobs report.
The safe-haven asset benefited from renewed investor confidence that the Federal Reserve is unlikely to pursue further tightening, given the evident softness in the labor market.
The catalyst was the latest US nonfarm payrolls data, which showed job creation of just 57,000 in June.
This figure fell sharply short of market consensus estimates, underscoring a significant deceleration in hiring activity.
The miss has prompted traders to scale back bets on aggressive interest rate increases, providing immediate tailwinds for gold, which typically performs well in lower-rate environments.
The weak labor data stands in stark contrast to earlier months, where payrolls had surged well above expectations.