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LONDON, March 13- Aluminium and zinc rose on Wednesday after Chinese plans to buy metal for government strategic stocks emerged and copper steadied as physical demand began to return in top consumer China.

SYDNEY, March 14- Australian employment soared by 71,500 in February, far above any forecast and the biggest increase in over a decade, the most compelling sign yet that low rates and rising asset prices are fuelling an economic pick-up.

The projects, to be built mostly on federal lands in California and Nevada but funded privately, were announced by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar at a press conference in San Francisco.

NEW YORK, March 13- Citadel LLC, the largest investor in E* Trade Financial Corp, is selling its entire stake in the discount brokerage and bank company, ending a contentious and profitable five-year relationship.

The two-day summit will also give EU leaders a chance to discuss budget policies, with signs that France and Spain could be given more time to meet deficit goals as long as the trend of careful fiscal management is maintained.

Earlier this year a New England Journal of Medicine study compared the risk of cardiovascular death from different antibacterial drugs and found that the drug, which is made by Pfizer Inc and is also sold by generic drugmakers, had a higher rate of death.

Refunds may be delayed four to six weeks from mid-February, likely not showing up until late March, the IRS said. The agency is working with tax-preparation businesses to deliver the refunds, said IRS spokeswoman Michelle Eldridge. An H&R Block spokesman said the software problem had been fixed and the company was working with the IRS.

*Board to review land deals by CEO Tom Ward. *Board to decide Ward's fate by June 30. NEW YORK, March 13- SandRidge Energy Inc and activist hedge fund TPG-Axon Capital struck a deal on Wednesday that could lead to the removal of the oil and gas company's chief executive, Tom Ward, SandRidge said.

*Asia shares fall, regional factors overshadow record Dow. TOKYO, March 14- Asian shares fell on Thursday with regional factors outweighing positive sentiment from another record Wall Street close after strong U.S. retail sales sustained an optimistic growth outlook, while the dollar index stayed near seven-month highs.

LONG BEACH, Calif., March 13- Foreign stocks are coveted for the superior growth and value they can offer. Investors have turned to them lately for higher income, too. The recent outperformance of U.S. stocks helps to account both for their comparatively meager yields and expensive valuations, said Alex Robins, an international equity manager at J.P.

SINGAPORE, March 14- Gold steadied just below $1,590 an ounce early on Thursday after slipping in the previous session when upbeat U.S. retail sales strengthened the outlook for the world's top economy and dampened bullion's safe-haven appeal.

TORONTO, March 13- BlackBerry's volatile shares surged on Wednesday after the smartphone maker said one of its established partners had placed an order for 1 million BlackBerry 10 smartphones, with shipments set to begin immediately.

SAN FRANCISCO, March 13- Apple Inc marketing chief Phil Schiller attacked Google Inc's "fragmented" Android software and its biggest adopter, Samsung Electronics, a day before the Korean firm takes the wraps off its latest flagship smartphone in the United States.

SINGAPORE, March 14- London copper slipped on Thursday, under pressure from a stronger dollar after U.S. retail sales data underlined a recovery in the world's top economy, while Chinese consumers stay on the sidelines given ample domestic supply.

March 13- Philip Morris International Inc, the maker of Marlboro and L&M cigarettes, said it appointed Andre Calantzopoulos as chief executive, marking his return to a role he gave up after the company's spin-off from Altria Group Inc in 2008..

LONDON, March 13- The yen rose for a second straight day on Wednesday, trading above a 3-1/ 2- year low versus the dollar, helped by a bout of profit taking by investors who had placed hefty bets against it recently.

NEW YORK/ WASHINGTON, March 13- The Obama administration is drawing up plans to give all U.S. spy agencies full access to a massive database that contains financial data on American citizens and others who bank in the country, according to a Treasury Department document seen by Reuters. The Federal Bureau of Investigation already has full access to the database.

KIEV, March 13- The United States on Wednesday urged Ukraine not to renegotiate its World Trade Organisation commitments, warning the move could trigger a chain reaction and bring down the whole global trade system.

March 13- U.S. online retail sales will grow about 10 percent each year between now and 2017, as more people use mobile devices and top chains build up their infrastructure, Forrester Research said in its annual forecast on Wednesday. By 2017, U.S. online retail sales should reach $370 billion, compared with $262 billion this year, according to Forrester.