1.   At the European Commission in Brussels, officials said the simple black euro kits were specifically designed not to attract attention as gifts or souvenirs.

2.   A recent poll in Germany by the Emnid research institute found that more than half of all Germans wanted the euro starter kits.

3.   Austria, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and Finland will begin distributing euro starter kits on Saturday.

4.   Finance Minister Laurent Fabius, taking part in a question and answer session on France-Info radio, predicted a big success for the euro kits.

5.   He predicted that euro starter kits would sell out in Berlin by next Wednesday at the latest.

6.   In Italy long queues dominated by elderly people formed in post offices distributing euro kits for the first time on Saturday, discouraging many.

7.   Banks will begin distributing the euro kits from Monday in Italy.

8.   Eager customers in Paris began snapping up euro coin kits at midnight.

9.   Euro coin kits also will go on sale Saturday in Austria, Belgium, Finland, Luxembourg and Spain, and Monday in Germany, Greece and Portugal.

10.   Euro kits are also highly sought by collectors fetching two or three times their face value, the daily added.