Social protests in France wane, but rail and air transport strikes continue

Further strikes disrupted rail and air transport in France on Thursday but the broader protest over plans to raise the retirement age appeared to be waning a day after parliament adopted pension reform legislation.

Flights in and out of French airports were reduced by 30 to 50 percent due to a one-day stoppage by air traffic controllers, and a rolling strike by rail workers halved some services but caused less disruption than previously to high-speed links, Reuters informs.

The main protest rally of the day was to start in Paris at 1:00 pm (1100 GMT), and was expected to draw hundreds of thousands in its own right.

Sarkozy's approval rating is languishing at a new low of 29 percent, but he nevertheless hopes a pension reform victory can help restore his political fortunes in the run-up to re-election in 2012, AFP says.