US retailers reported their best year-on-year monthly sales gains in a decade on Thursday, thanks to Easter holiday purchases and a rise in discretionary spending.  Retail Metrics, which tracks monthly retail figures, said its same store sales index rose 8.7 percent in MarchÔÇöthe largest monthly increase since it began tracking the data in 2000. The company said the strong performance was due to the early Easter and easy comparisons with last yearÔÇöwhen the index fell 4.8 percent.

The World Bank has approved a $3.75 billion loan to the South African utility firm Eskom, which will mostly go towards the development of its Medupi coal-fired power plant.

Two of the biggest airlines in the USÔÇöUnited Airlines and US AirwaysÔÇöare in talks over a possible merger, according to reports.  The companies are said to have been in discussions for two weeks, but as yet, no agreement has been reached. The talks were first reported in the New York Times. Chicago-based United is the third-largest airline in the US by traffic, and Tempe, Arizona-based US Airways is the sixth.

Renault, Nissan and Daimler have announced a three-way alliance to jointly develop new small cars, light commercial vans and engine technologies.

Jinchuan Group, China's biggest producer of nickel, copper and platinum-palladium, has made a C$150 million offer for Toronto-based Crowflight Minerals.  Crowflight is a producer of nickel in Northern Manitoba and a holder of other development properties in Northern Ontario. The company recently restarted its Bucko Lake nickel mine within the Thompson Nickel Belt in Manitoba as the price of the metal recovered.

Royal Dutch Shell said on Tuesday it was planning to sell its operations in Finland as part of a drive to focus its operations on bigger markets.

Utility owner Xcel Energy Inc. has announced it is to buy two power plants from Calpine Corp. for $739 million.  The purchase includes the 621-megawatt Rocky Mountain Energy Center near Hudson, Colorado, and the 310-megawatt Blue Spruce Energy Center near Aurora, Colorado. The plantsÔÇÖ combined capacity can power about 700,000 homes. The Rocky Mountain and Blue Spruce plants, both fueled by natural gas, sell power to Minneapolis-based XcelÔÇÖs Public Service Co.

US billionaire Wilbur Ross has pledged ┬ú500 million to help Virgin Money bid for the Royal Bank of ScotlandÔÇÖs branch network.

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