Sep 27--PRNewswire/AsiaNet US: AVIATION CUTS... ATLANTA: Delta Air Lines today said that "dramatically lower demand" for air travel and related financial losses - prompted by the U.S. terrorist attacks - would lead them to cut 13,000 jobs across the company. OIL/GAS JOINT STUDY... BEIJING: China's National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) will undertake a joint study agreement with Shell Exploration China to develop oil and gas reserves in Bohai Bay, near Shangdong province, a company news release said today.EURO RELEASE... MCLEAN: Freddic Mac today announced its launch of a new euro five billion 10-year EuroReference note, which would be listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. Joint bookrunners for the transaction would be Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, Goldman Sachs, Schroder and Salomon Smith Barney, the corporation said.INVESTMENT RATING... BEIJING: Investment agencies, Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investors Service, today delivered a "stable" rating for China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), citing the company's "inherent strength" and "financial flexibility", according to a media release. CNOOC obtained a Baa2 rating from Moody's and a BBB rating from Standard & Poor's, a statement reported.EUR: PASSENGER TRAFFIC UP... FRANKFURT: Frankfurt airport owner-operators, Fraport AG, today quelled market fears over the impact of the U.S. terrorist attacks on passenger numbers, stating that figure's had returned to the previous year's level, after only a temporary slump.VENTURE CAPITAL... BOSTON: A global content management company, Presence Online, partnered with IBM/Lotus, has secured A$7 million in second round funding, according to a press statement. First-round investors, Ericsson-Deutsche Technology Fund and Deutsche Private Equity Fund, which invested in the company in July 2000, have provided an additional A$3.5 million, while Rothschild e-Fund has also come on board with A$3.5 million.BETTER SECURITY... SYDNEY: Enterprise and service providers will be able to better protect their networks with the help of Netscreen Technologies latest firewall and VPN resilient software, the company has announced.WIRELESS GAMING... EDINBURGH: Wireless gaming company, Digital Bridges Ltd, has received an $US 18 million investment from Apax Partnres Funds and Argo II, the companies responsible for its initial round of funding, the company said today. "Mobile entertainment now accounts for over 70% of revenues generated in both Europe and Japan", Alan MacIntosh, Vice President of Telesystem-Argo Global Capital, said. GAS ENGINE DEAL... CERRITOS: IMPCO Technologies Inc, world producer of internal combustion engines, will supply natural gas engine systems to Tecogen Inc, after closing a $US 4 million sales deal, the company today announced.CASTLE RESTORED... DUSSELDORF: German diversified consumer goods company, Henkel, will donate Euro 4.1 million to restore a Dusseldorf baroque castle - Benrath - a philanthropic gesture to celebrate its 125th anniversary, the company announced today. TECHNOLOGY DEAL... DALLAS: Carreker Corporation, an e-finance facilitation company, today announced that its cash inventory management system would be used in an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) network, to be implemented by the U.K's Alliance & Leicester plc. ONLINE BETTING... ST JOHNS: Internet casino, Real Entertainment Ltd, has launched an online bet wagering system for horse, harness and greyhound racing, along with jai alai events, rendering obselete the need for bettors to be physically present at the track, the company said.ASIA-PACIFIC MAINTENANCE DEAL... VENTURA: Asia-Pacific warranty support services for Gateway Inc's computer systems will be exclusively handled by Vsource Inc, a customised business outsourcing company, according to a media release issued today. The deal covers Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, among other Asia-Pacific countries.EXECUTIVE APPOINTMENTS: MONTEREY PARK: Telecommunications industry veteran, Mr Robert Barron, has joined the board of LightCross Inc as ceo and president, the optical networking company said today. (AsiaNet is a consortium of leading news agencies distributing unedited, translated press releases for worldwide clients. Contact: www.asianet.com.au for full-text versions).