RJ and Makay

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The Labor Department report today showed that jobless claims fell to a new four-year low. First-time applications for unemployment benefits fell last week by 6,000 to a seasonably adjusted 357,000, the lowest numbers since April 2008 and cause for optimism heading into tomorrow’s Bureau of Labor Statistics employment situation report for March.

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U.S. financial services firms have been dramatically cutting staff this year and more Wall Street layoffs are on the horizon, according to a Challenger Gray and Christmas report released this week.  The 2011 staff reductions, as compared to the widespread layoffs stemming from the 2008 financial crises, appear to be more permanent.  Through May, banks, insurance firms and brokers have made plans to eliminate 11,413 positions, compared with 9,431 during the same period a year ago.

March was a solid month for the jobs market, with private U.S. employers adding 201,000 jobs, reports ADP Employer Services. The ADP report, created jointly with Macroeconomic Advisers LLC, is in line with what economists expect to hear Friday from the government in its more comprehensive public and private sector employment report.

"While a touch softer than February's, this is a strong report that indicates continued momentum in the pace of labor market recovery," says Barclays Capital, noting it still expects the government's report on Friday to show 175,000 new jobs in March. In a new Reuters poll of economists, median forecasts call for increases in nonfarm and private payrolls of 190,000 and 200,000, respectively.