Spot gold prices climbed nearly 2% to trade at $4,466.90 an ounce, fueled by lingering anxieties over the broader health of the American economy. Previous labor reports, which fell short of projections, continue to drive market sentiment despite the latest figures from the Labor Department showing only a marginal upward revision to the prior week’s count of 204,000 claims.

Analysts are currently weighing whether cooling job growth might compel the Federal Reserve to pause interest rate hikes during this month's meeting. This shift in focus marks a departure from recent pressure on gold, which had struggled following remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh at the Jackson Hole Symposium. Warsh had previously signaled that inflation remains the primary concern for the central bank, outweighing the risks posed by a softening labor market.