French president, Airbus to unveil 'major deal' Monday

French President Francois Hollande will on Monday host the chief executive of aerospace giant Airbus to celebrate the signing of "a major industrial agreement", the presidential office said in a statement Sunday. The government said the deal will be signed as France's Industry Week kicks off, but declined to give more details on the nature of the agreement. Monday's meeting between Hollande and Fabrice Bregier will take place at 1000 GMT at the presidential palace. The news comes just days after Airbus received an order worth at least $9.3 billion (7.1 billion euros) from Turkish airlines for 117 planes. On top of that, the deal includes an option for another 35 aircraft that could bring the total value of the agreement to $15.5 billion. As France battles with rising unemployment figures, Airbus is one of the few companies that continues to recruit heavily. In January, Bregier said the company would hire 3,000 people worldwide in 2013.