China's prime minister met Monday with French President Jacques Chirac amid expectations of a big Chinese order for European aircraft-maker Airbus. Wen Jiabao arrived in France on Sunday and started with a tour of the assembly plant of the giant Airbus A380. On Monday, he met Chirac at the French presidential Elysee Palace. From there, he was going into talks with the French prime minister, Dominique de Villepin. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Chinese government could purchase as many as 150 Airbus single-aisle planes during Wen's visit. It cited a senior aviation executive with knowledge of the negotiations.
