New York, April 1 (DPA) US stocks declined Wednesday after a private survey suggested that March was a worse than expected month for the struggling US labour market.

ADP Employer Services predicted that US firms shed 23,000 jobs over the month, dealing a blow to the hopes of economists that the labour market would finally begin emerging from a prolonged slump.

Economists have predicted that 40,000 jobs were added in March, according to a Bloomberg News survey. The government's official monthly tally will be released Friday.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 50.79 points, or 0.47 percent, to 10,856.63. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index fell 3.84 points, to 1,169.43. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was down 12.73 points, or 0.53 percent, to 2,397.96.

Wednesday marked a disappointing end to an otherwise strong first quarter. The Dow has climbed 4.11 percent, the S&P jumped 4.87 percent, and the Nasdaq gained 5.68 percent since the start of the year.

The US currency dropped Wednesday against the euro to 74.02 euro cents from 74.56 euro cents Tuesday. The dollar climbed against the Japanese currency to 93.45 yen from 92.8 yen a day earlier.