麻豆约拍

The fate of EgyptAir flight MS804 is still a mystery - nearly 24 hours after the plane went missing over the eastern Mediterranean en route from Paris to Cairo. The plane had just left the control of Greek air traffic control and entered Egyptian air space when it disappeared. We hear from Helena Smith of the British Guardian newspaper in Athens.

The French government has had a torrid time of it persuading voters to back its proposed labour reforms. President Francois Hollande says he won't back down on plans to make hiring and firing easier - and to force unions to negotiate pay and conditions on a company-by-company basis, rather than at the national level. He believes the changes will encourage firms to recruit - and so help to bring down France's stubbornly high unemployment rate of more than 10 percent. We bring both sides of the argument together to discuss the issues. Yves Veyrier is a spokesman for one of the country's largest trade unions, Force Ouvri猫re - and Alexandre Saubot, vice president of MEDEF, the French employers' federation.

Farming has been key to our survival for centuries. These days, it's also big business - and talks are underway to create what would be the world's biggest agricultural supplier. The German drug and pesticides giant Bayer has made a takeover bid for the American firm Monsanto, which among other things produces genetically modified crop seeds. We hear from David Jones, a reporter for the UK-based Farmers Weekly.

Fergus Nicoll is joined by Brian Czech of the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy in Washington DC, and Stephanie Studer in Seoul where she is bureau chief for the Economist.

(Picture: EgyptAir planes on the tarmac at Cairo international airport Credit: AFP/Getty Images)