News stops: Credit Agricole exits Greece

A LOOK over some of the headlines from France.

Credit Agricole in talks to hand Greek bank to Alpha
France's third-largest bank said it was negotiating to sell Emporiki to Alpha, Greece's number three lender, for a symbolic one euro as it prepares to quit the country.

ArcelorMittal to close idled French furnaces
Steel giant ArcelorMittal Monday confirmed its intention to close two idle blast furnaces in eastern France and accepted a government deadline of 60 days to find a buyer.

French new car sales plummet 18% in September
French car sales dropped 18.3 percent year-on-year in September, signalling more gloom for domestic firms struggling with plummeting demand in Europe and high production costs.

France's smokers take a hit as tax hikes begin
Smokers in France ready themselves to feel the pinch, as a tax on tobacco goes into effect.

Protesters echo Mélenchon's 'no' to austerity
France’s Left Front Leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon rounded up supporters on Sunday against austerity and the European fiscal treaty. Thousands of people and more than sixty organisations took part in a protest through the streets of Paris.