Toulouse, France - Australian carrier QantasQantas has taken delivery of the first of the 20 Airbus A380 superjumbo aircraft it has ordered, Airbus said Friday.

The aircraft was handed over to Qantas CEO Geoff Dixon at a ceremony at Airbus headquarters in the southern French city of Toulouse.

The world's largest commercial airliner, the A380 typically seats 525 passengers but can seat up to 850, depending on cabin configuration.

The Qantas A380 will have a more spacious cabin, with only 450 seats, 332 of them in Economy class, Airbus said in its statement.

Paris - Inspired by Wall Street's strong Thurs

Paris - The French government has climbed down after widespread protests over a new police database, French media reported on Friday.

Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie is to present a new version of the Edvige database later Friday, on the demand of Prime Minister Francois Fillon, who bowed to complaints from human rights groups, opposition politicians and members of his own UMP party.

Edvige - which stands for Documentary Exploitation - was created by government decree on June 27 to replace a 1991 database used by France's domestic security agency RG to track public figures, such as politicians and labour leaders, who could resort to violence and threaten the security of the state.

New Delhi, Sep 18 : More than two lakh Indians in France will be eligible to avail social security benefits under an agreement India and France sign during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh''s visit to Paris later this month.

The Union Cabinet today approved the terms for signing a Social Security Agreement between the two countries.

"The social security agreement will provide various benefits to Indian nationals working in France," Information and Broadcasting Minister P R Dasmunsi told reporters after a cabinet meeting here.

Paris - Buoyed by the intervention of major central

Paris - Buoyed by the intervention of major central banks in foreign exchange markets, French shares on Thursday were resisting the downward pull created by Wednesday's Wall Street sell-off.

One hour after opening, the Paris Bourse's benchmark CAC 40 was up 0.19 per cent, at 4,007.60. Shortly after trading began, the CAC 40 sank to its lowest level in three years before recovering.

The resistance was led by Franco-Belgian bank Dexia, which gained 5 per cent to 8.64 euros. French bank BNP Paribas was up 2.16 per cent, at 57.40 euros.