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Sean Chua expected the hunt for his first job after college to be tough. After all, he watched his brother struggle to find a position when he graduated back in 2008. But his fears were unwarranted. The 21-year-old justice major at American University sent out only seven resumes before getting an offer earlier this month from IBM for an IT consulting job, making him a beneficiary of a turnaround in the labor market for U.S. graduates. “My mom’s first position was with IBM so she is particularly proud,” says Chua. Hiring is back in a big way on many college campuses, one of several signs a recovery in the U.S. jobs market is gaining traction. After four years during which many students graduated to find no job and had only their loans to show for their studies, most college campuses are teeming with companies eager to hire. A survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) found 2012 hiring is expected to climb 10.2 percent, above a previous estimate of 9.5 percent.

Companies such as General Electric, Amazon, Apple and Barclays Global are looking for new staff, even if some firms remain below the pre-recession levels of new hiring. In another sign of the recovery, some first-time job seekers are receiving multiple offers.

At University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, the career service office has seen up to now a 7.4 percent increase in the number of interviews of students by potential employers from last year and the number of companies seeking to recruit for full-time jobs is up 9.2 percent. Undergraduate business majors reporting full-time job offers is up about 10 percent.

Career experts at a dozen of U.S. schools said they have seen an increase of 15 to 30 percent in the number of companies attending campus career fairs. At University of Florida, the fall career fair garnered 15 percent more companies in attendance than in 2010. And 150 companies asked to conduct interviews versus about 100 in recent years, said Ja’Net Glover, associate director of employer relations at the school. The increase in demand was so significant that it was the first time in years the school had to use both the first and second floors of the school’s basketball facility for interviews.

“It’s kind of like a no-brainer,” says Kathy Sims. Director of Career Services at UCLA. “The economy is better and the college recruitment market is improving.”

While the U.S. jobless rate fell to 8.3 percent in February, unemployment among college graduates over the age of 25 stood at 4.2 percent. Historically, their jobless rate is half that of Americans with only a high school education. Over the recession, unemployment among graduates climbed as high as 5 percent, sparking protests over the rising tuition cost of some U.S. colleges. U.S. unemployment data for March, due for release on April 6, is expected to show a total of just over 200,000 jobs were created in the month, keeping the overall unemployment rate at 8.3 percent.

BACKLOG FROM PAST YEARS, INTERNS SOAR

College graduates’ earnings are also on the rebound payday loan lenders. NACE says the median wage for first-time job seekers after college for 2012 is up 4.5 percent higher than a year ago to $42,569.

That initial pay level can resonate over the span of a career. Several studies show that the life-time earnings for workers who enter the labor force at time of economic recession are lower than lifetime earnings of those who are hired amid an economic recovery. Given the tepid recovery of the economy, some caution is required. In 2008, many college graduates who had already accepted job offers were later away. After the run of lean years, many graduates are stuck in low-paying jobs and professions that never intended to follow, meaning there could be a backlog of well-educated workers who need to get their careers on track as well as new graduates. However, with a wide range of employers — from automakers to investment banks — back on campus offering internships and full-time jobs, and not just to engineering, computer science and math majors, the outlook for the Class of 2012 looks rosy.

General Electric wants to hire 5,000 interns this year, up from its usual 3,000 to 4,000. Since 70 percent of its full-time hires come from the interns pool, Steve Canale, head of global recruiting, said that uptick will also translate into more full-time jobs after graduation. “(Companies) are saying, ‘we have an aging workforce, and we have to replenish the pipeline.’ GE has always done it, but this year a lot of other companies are also reloading their talent pool,” Canale said.

Chrysler said it plans to hire 400 interns this year compared to 256 in 2011. The automaker has also hired almost 4,000 salaried employees since June 2009, about a quarter of which are new college graduates. The pick-up in hiring extends to industries that were among the hardest hit during the financial crisis. Schools report that banking and financial services companies have returned to campus for the Class of 2012.

It’s a stark contrast from just a few years ago when smaller firms appeared on campuses to replace the corporations no longer showing up.

“Even students with lower grades are finding opportunities,” says Notre Dame’s Svete, who believes job placement at the school is up about 7 percent. In 2009, only 75 percent of students had jobs or plans for graduate school at graduation. This year, the school expects that to climb to 85 to 88 percent, closer to the 90 percent level of 2007.

Nathan Pace, a senior at American University, hasn’t yet found a job, but is confident for his future job. He started the college four years ago and he has since seen each class of graduating seniors have better luck finding jobs.

Many of his friends recently secured job offers. “The vibe on campus is that people are excited,” says Pace.

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A growing number of U.S. companies such as Facebook and Carlyle Group lining up to go public and a smattering of U.S. and European secondary offerings are once again giving investment bankers hope that the moribund equity capital markets may finally be waking up.

The S&P 500 has risen 12 percent in the first quarter and the market volatility tracker VIX is at five-year lows as fears about the U.S. economy and the euro zone debt crisis ease, prompting more companies to tap the public markets after being effectively shut out for the last few months.

Global equity fundraising, including IPOs and secondary offerings, tumbled 25.8 percent in the first quarter of 2012 to $150.2 billion, compared with the same period in 2011, Thomson Reuters data shows.

Global IPO proceeds, which reached $17.4 billion in 173 issues, sank to their lowest volume since the second quarter of 2009, the data shows.

Many risks to a recovery still persist, such as the impact of slowing growth in China on Asian markets, but bankers said they expect volumes at least in the United States to improve over the rest of the year.

“The IPO market had been very slow to get out of the gate in the first half of the quarter, but the last half has really been catching up,” said David Hermer, head of Americas syndicate at Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz). “A number of recent landmark deals will materially change the landscape, in a positive way.”

Technology deals, which captured nearly a third of all U.S. IPOs during the quarter, are expected to lead the market again, as investors pile into sectors like cloud computing, social media and mobile.

Bankers said even European companies, particularly those with a tech focus, are thinking about U.S. listings.

British vacuum technology firm Edwards, which pulled a London float last year due to choppy markets, and German high-tech lighting company Novaled this month filed with U.S. regulators for IPOs.

In a sign that the recovery might be more broad-based, companies in other sectors are beginning to test the markets as well. Private equity giant Carlyle Group (CG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), crafts retailer Michaels Stores MCHST.UL and real estate investment trust Empire State Realty Trust (ESB.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) are all planning IPOs.

“You’re going to see more industrial companies coming out, many with higher levels of financial leverage, along with technology, energy and consumer retail,” said James Palmer, New York-based managing director of equity capital markets at UBS AG (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz). “You’ll see a much broader spectrum in both the quality and type of product.”

A big chunk of the activity is expected to come from private equity firms, as they look to exit investments, many of which date back to the buyout boom of 2006-2007, and sell down stakes through follow-on offerings.

“Sponsors are going to play an important role in overall capital formation,” said Phil Drury, co-head of equity capital markets in the Americas at Citigroup Inc (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

For banks, more activity means more underwriting fees fast cash loans. In the first quarter, Citigroup topped the global ranking of equity underwriters with 76 deals accounting for proceeds of $14.3 billion, up from No. 7 in the first quarter of 2011.

Goldman Sachs (GS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) came in at No. 2, down from its No. 1 slot in the prior year, and JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) took No. 3, up from its No. 5 position.

Guosen Securities, a Chinese investment bank, was the leader for global IPOs, raising $1.4 billion for clients, thanks to a number of solo deals like a $337.7 million IPO for computer knitting machine producer Ningbo Cixing Co and a $249.8 million offering for silicon maker Xi’an LONGi Silicon Materials.

“The IPO market has been slow to start, but the stars are finally starting to align,” said Brian Reilly, head of U.S. equity capital markets at Barclays (BARC.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

TENTATIVE RECOVERY

While the level of activity is expected to rebound from the lows seen over the last six months, bankers said the global markets are far from getting back to normal. Risks such as worries about a fragile global economy, Europe’s debt problems and escalating tensions with Iran continue to add uncertainty and weigh down the markets.

Investors’ concerns over a slowdown in China’s economy put a damper on the Asia-Pacific market, which had dominated equity capital market issuance as the West grappled with the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008.

“The problems are much closer to home,” said Rupert Mitchell, head of equity syndication for Asia-Pacific at Citigroup. “The world is worried about China right now, where growth is going to be more measured this year.”

Activity in the region tumbled 37 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier to $36.7 billion, the lowest quarterly volume since the second quarter of 2009. IPOs were down 75 percent, accounting for most of the weakness in the beginning of the year.

The major listings expected in Asia this year include the $1 billion IPO by high-end jeweler Graff Diamonds and $1.5 billion offering by Haitong Securities in Hong Kong; the $1 billion IPO by football club Manchester United MNU.UL in Singapore; and nearly $4 billion from two deals in Malaysia: Felda Global Ventures and healthcare company Parkway Pantai.

In Europe, German chemicals maker Evonik and insurance group Talanx and Italian aero-engine parts maker Avio are among those seen as most likely to launch their IPOs in the first half. The sale of the Russian central bank’s stake in Sberbank (SBER.MM: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), worth around $6 billion, could also be launched in mid-April.

But overall companies are likely to wait at least until the second half of the year before tapping the markets, bankers said.

“The market in Europe is open and investors are engaged, but every deal will be evaluated on its own merit and on a case-by-case basis,” said Viswas Raghavan, global head of equity capital markets at JPMorgan.

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Greece will probably have to restructure its debt again and this may involve bailout partners such as the International Monetary Fund, said Moritz Kraemer, head of sovereign ratings at Standard & Poor

The 17 countries that use the euro should boost their crisis firewalls to at least (EURO)1 trillion ($1.3 trillion) to help the struggling currency union return to growth, the head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Tuesday.

Angelo Gurria, the head of the Paris-based international development body, said current commitments to the rescue funds, which are limited to (EURO)500 billion ($664 billion), are not enough to restore market confidence in the eurozone.

“A credible firewall will provide governments with the breathing space they need to focus on revitalizing Europe’s economic growth and competitiveness,” Gurria said in a statement linked to the release of the OECD’s annual report on the eurozone economy.

According to the report, which also spells out a raft of economic reforms for individual countries, vulnerable states may need more than (EURO)1 trillion in aid over the coming two years.

Gurria said eurozone finance ministers should take a decision to boost their bailout funds at their meeting in Copenhagen later this week.

Germany, the bloc’s largest economy, signaled on Monday that it would only support a temporary increase to around (EURO)700 billion ($929 billion) instant payday loans.

But that falls below the recommendation of the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission, the European Union’s executive. It may also not be enough to convince other large non-euro economies, such as China and the U.S., to help in the beefing up of Europe’s defenses by sending more money to the IMF.

International institutions argue that a big and credible bailout fund would restore confidence in vulnerable countries like Italy and Spain and prevent them from actually having to seek help.

Gurria said it could also allow weak economies to focus on kickstarting growth by reforming their economies.

“Europe is stalling,” he said. “It needs to get out of first gear and make growth number one priority.”

However, countries like Germany fear that easy access to financial support could stop countries from implementing reforms.

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A New Jersey company that manages prescription benefits has agreed to pay $2.7 million to settle an investigation into influence-peddling at California’s largest public pension fund, officials announced Friday.

The California attorney general’s office said Medco Health Solutions Inc. also has agreed to change its internal procedures.

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System did not renew a contract with Medco last year after an investigation revealed the company paid more than $4 million to Alfred Villalobos to help secure a prescription drug contract.

Villalobos is a former CalPERS board member who acted as a middleman to help companies gain contracts with the pension fund. The state attorney general has charged him with setting up a system of kickbacks to gain influence with pension fund executives.

California officials sued Villalobos in 2010, and the case is expected to head to trial later this year in Los Angeles. At the same time, federal authorities continue criminal and civil investigations.

Medco spokeswoman Ann Smith said the company is pleased the state investigation affirmed “no wrongdoing of any kind.” She said the review determined no employees violated any rules or Medco’s code of conduct no fax payday loan.

“Our retainer agreement bound Mr. Villalobos to follow all applicable laws and regulations to the work on our behalf,” Smith said.

CalPERS CEO Anne Stausboll said in a statement she was pleased with the settlement, a portion of which will be shared with CalPERS.

Medco provided mail-order prescription drug benefits for approximately 300,000 CalPERS members who were enrolled in the pension fund’s health plans between July 2006 and December 2011. CVS Caremark Corp. is now administering the benefits.

According to the state’s complaint against Medco, the health care company failed to ensure that Villalobos refrained from meeting with CalPERS board members and staff during the competitive bid process.

Under the settlement, Medco agreed it won’t “unlawfully interfere or tamper” with the competitive bidding process of any California governmental agency. It also agreed to a requirement that Medco’s directors review the case and take internal measures to prevent the same problem in the future.

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If you are a local subscriber to multiple daily deal sites, you’ve no doubt received several offers — $5 for $10 or $6 for $12 — for Joe Fassi Sausage & Sandwich Factory.

Every week it seems like another deal from this one-man shop on Sublette Avenue on the Hill pops up in my inbox. This week alone, it had deals running on Groupon and Wedeal. I would venture that this restaurant is, if not the most prolific, then at least one of the most active merchants offering daily deals in the region.

While some businesses may be reluctant or wary of offering these deep discounts, that shop seems to be a true believer.

So I decided to stop in earlier this week and check out the place. It started out as a grocery in 1926 and is now run as a sandwich shop by Tom Coll, the grandson of Joe Fassi.

“I know you hear a lot of bad stories about coupon sites,” he said after fixing a sandwich for a customer. “But it works for me. I have no complaints.”

So just how many deals has he offered?

“Oh my gosh,” he said. “I probably use 14 different sites. You see all those clipboards? That’s how we keep them all straight.”

Coll motioned to a dozen clipboards hanging on the wall behind the cash register. Each one is for a different deal site such as Deal Chicken, Eversave and Urban Dealight. Names of customers who have redeemed the offer are highlighted in a green or yellow marker. A handful of other sites he uses have computerized systems.

So why does he do it?

“We’re just so off the beaten track so we needed to find a way to market our business,” Coll said. “It’s a great way to get your name out there. Someone told me … that you need to brand your name. You do that by being everywhere.”

And this way he doesn’t have to spend much money on marketing, he added.

Since he offered his first deal through Groupon about a year ago, he estimates that he’s sold about 3,000 to 4,000 deals. Most people end up spending more than the coupon value. And about 60 percent of his customers who use the deal come back and pay full price. So overall, sales have increased about 20 percent, he said.

Daily deals may not work for everyone, Coll cautioned no fax pay day loan. You have to do the math to make sure you’re covering your costs. And it may be that it works better for him because he is a small business with fewer overhead costs, he said.

Now that he’s become a deal regular, he fields a lot of calls from other obscure sites around the country wanting to carry an offer for him.

“But you ask them how many emails they have in St. Louis and they’re like a thousand,” Coll said. “That’s not worth the time. But yeah, people come out of the woodwork.”

WE LIKE OUR TACO BELL

Taco Bell’s new “Doritos Locos Taco” — yes, that’s a taco in a shell made of nacho cheese-flavored Doritos chips — has apparently been doing quite well in the St. Louis market.

At least that’s the word from the new owner of about two-thirds of the Taco Bell locations in this area.

Marjorie Perlman, a spokeswoman for Alabama-based Tacala LLC, said the new product’s success is a sign of how well Taco Bell is received in the St. Louis region.

“Folks in St. Louis like to eat out — we like that,” she said. “And it seems like you guys are kind of risk takers when it come to your culinary choices.”

Some critics may take issue with her last point. But I guess she means that St. Louisans don’t just eat burgers — but also are willing to “branch out” to tacos.

Tacala, the largest franchise operator of Taco Bell restaurants in the nation, now owns 61 of the 90 Taco Bell locations in this region, making it the company’s largest market. The company just acquired 34 locations from Yum Brands, which franchises the fast-food chain. And a month ago, it bought Wentzville-based GenXMex Foods’ portfolio of 27 local Taco Bell locations.

“We’re primarily in the Southeast,” Perlman said of Tacala, whose second biggest market is Birmingham, Ala., with 43 stores. “We’ve been wanting to expand for awhile.”

She added that the company plans to invest in the stores it has acquired — remodeling and putting in new equipment where needed.

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The number of Americans claiming new unemployment benefits dropped to a four-year low last week, offering further evidence the jobs market recovery was gaining traction.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 348,000, the lowest level since February 2008, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

The prior week’s figure was revised up to 353,000 from the previously reported 351,000. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims rising to 354,000 last week.

The four-week moving average for new claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends, declined 1,250 to 355,000.

The claims data covered the survey week for March nonfarm payrolls. Claims dropped 5,000 between the February and March survey periods, suggesting another month of solid job gains.

“That’s another indication that the labor market is healing. That’s good news for the March payroll report,” said Gus Faucher, a senior economist at PNC Financial Services in Pittsburgh.

“We are looking at net job growth of 200,000, which will be another good month. On the labor front, we have dug a deep hole but we seem to be digging out of it.”

Employers added 227,000 jobs to their payrolls in February, taking the tally for the past three months to 734,000. The unemployment rate currently is at 8.3 percent, having dropped 0.8 percentage point since August payday loan.

The Federal Reserve has said it expects the jobless rate to “gradually” decline.

U.S. Treasury debt prices fell on the data and the dollar extended gains against the euro. U.S. stock index futures held their losses as investors worried about slowing growth in China.

A Labor Department official said there was nothing unusual in the state-level data and that only two states - Alaska and Minnesota - had been estimated.

The department next week will introduce new seasonal factors for 2012 and revisions for claims data from 2007 through 2011.

The number of people still receiving benefits under regular state programs after an initial week of aid fell 9,000 to 3.35 million in the week ended March 10, the lowest since August 2008.

Despite the improving labor market picture, long-term unemployment remains a major problem and about 43 percent of the 12.8 million out of work Americans in February had been jobless for more than six months.

The number of Americans on emergency unemployment benefits dropped 24,312 to 2.85 million in the week ended March 3, the latest week for which data is available.

A total of 7.28 million people were claiming unemployment benefits during that period under all programs, down 142,499 from the prior week.

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A panel of cancer experts rejected an experimental Merck drug for a rare form of cancer on Tuesday while recommending approval of a GlaxoSmithKline treatment for the same disease. Neither drug appears to help patients live longer, but panelists said Glaxo’s Votrient helped delay tumor growth in the most vulnerable patients.

The FDA panel reviewed the two drugs submitted to treat sarcoma, a rare class of tumors that form in the fat, muscles and bone in the limbs and abdomen. An estimated 11,000 people in the U.S. were diagnosed with the soft tissue cancer in 2011 and 3,900 died from the disease, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Many cancer drugs approved by the FDA do not actually extend survival, but instead slow the growth of tumors or their spread to other parts of the body. In recent years, cancer experts have debated the significance of such results, particularly given the potentially dangerous side effects.

The panel voted 11-2 that the benefits of Glaxo’s pill Votrient outweighed its risks, noting there are few other treatment options for patients.

“There are no drugs approved by the FDA specifically for this indication and that’s what drove my decision to vote yes,” said Dr. Mikkael Sekeres of the Cleveland Clinic.

GlaxoSmithKline plc, based in the U.K., studied Votrient in sarcoma patients whose cancer has spread to other parts of the body after unsuccessful treatment with chemotherapy drugs, the standard treatment for the disease. Such patients usually survive only a year to 18 months.

While patients taking Votrient didn’t live longer than those taking chemotherapy alone, they did see a three-month delay in growth of their tumors, on average. Some patients experienced an even longer delay, which panelists said supported the drug’s benefit.

“I feel the effect is marginal but there does appear to be a group of patients who have benefited from this for longer periods of time,” said panel chair Dr. Wyndham Wilson of the National Cancer Institute.

The panel saw less potential for Merck’s ridaforolimus, which the company acquired through Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc. The group voted 13-1 against the drug, saying its significant side effects _ which affected 60 percent of patients _ outweighed its benefits.

Merck & Co. Inc. of Whitehouse Station, N.J., submitted the drug as a maintenance therapy, meaning it would be used to help repress sarcoma of the bone and tissue in patients whose cancer is already in remission. Since such patients are healthier than patients with active disease, panelists said they wanted to see a more dramatic benefit to justify putting patients on a drug with major side effects. The FDA has only approved a handful of cancer drugs for maintenance use.

Company trials showed no survival benefit and a meager seven-week delay in disease progression compared with patients not taking the drug. Panelists were also troubled by the high rate of side effects in patients, which led 14 percent to drop out of the study. Side effects included lung irritation, kidney failure and high blood pressure

“I didn’t see anything that would indicate it should be recommended based on the information we have today,” said Lee Helman of the National Cancer Institute.

The FDA is scheduled to make a decision on Glaxo’s drug by May 6 and Merck’s drug by June 5.

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China

Holland Construction Services Inc. completed building the Center for Orthopedic and Neurosciences at Memorial Hospital in Belleville, which recently opened and is offering medical services.

The 85,000-square-foot building is the third office building and the first free-standing structure on Memorial Hospital’s campus in Belleville. In addition to providing additional office space for doctors, the $24 million building offers pain management, physical, occupational, hand and speech therapy, sports medicine and other services.

ACI/Boland Inc. provided architectural services for the project.

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