The report took the wind out of gains in the U.S. futures market.
The report was released one day after Senate Democrats revised a jobs bill, scaling back unemployment benefits and Medicare physician reimbursement measures. This revision would eliminate a $25 weekly supplement for the jobless that had been part of last year's stimulus act.
The cut will reduce the bill's cost by $5.8 billion over the next decade.
First-time jobless claims fallSeniors get Medicare drug checks early
