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Stocks: Strong quarter ends with a loss - CNNMoney.com -- Stocks ended lower Wednesday, but higher for the quarter after a strong showing in March, as downbeat jobs and manufacturing reports cooled a recent runup.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 50 points, or 0.5%, to end at 10,857.31. The S&P 500 index slipped 4 points, or 0.3%. The Nasdaq composite lost 7 points, or 0.3%.

Wall Street reached the end of a solid quarter, even with Wednesday's losses. The Dow gained 4.1% over the first three months of the year, after a 5.2% advance in March, while the S&P added 4.9% for the quarter. The tech-heavy Nasdaq had the strongest quarterly showing, up 5.7%.

Treasurys rise on weak jobs data - CNNMoney.com -- Treasurys rose Wednesday after a report showed an unexpected decline in jobs, pushing investors to pull back on riskier assets and turn to the safety of government debt.

What prices are doing: The benchmark 10-year note rose 8/32 to 98-11/32, driving the yield down to 3.83% from 3.86% late Tuesday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.  The 30-year bond rose 14/32 to 98-20/32 with a yield of 4.72%. The 5-year note edged up 17/32 to 99-25/32 with a yield of 2.56%. The 2-year note edged up 21/32 to 99-31/32 with a yield of 1.02%.

Private sector continues to shed jobs - Private-sector employers continued to cut jobs in March, highlighting the challenges still facing the nation's job market, according to a report released Wednesday.

Automatic Data Processing, which processes paychecks for one in every six U.S. employees, said private-sector employers cut payrolls by 23,000 jobs in March, marking the smallest monthly decline since February 2008.

The decline surprised many economists. A consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a gain of 40,000 jobs in the month.
The number of job cuts in February was revised to a loss of 24,000 jobs from the previously reported 20,000.
"American businesses are on the cusp of recovery, yet this report shows that they remain hesitant to increase their payrolls," Gary Butler, chief executive of ADP, said in a statement.