trillion

according to my dictionary

10 (12)

Petit Robert: million de millions, soit 10(12)

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Note added at 10 mins (2005-03-11 13:11:55 GMT)
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In UK English: billion

billion n. m. billion

Définition :
Mille milliards, soit le chiffre 1 suivi de 12 zéros (1012).

. Note(s) :
Il existe une règle internationale de dénomination des grands nombres. Bien qu\'elle soit fortement recommandée par le Bureau international des poids et mesures, elle n\'a pas encore été adoptée par certains pays, dont les États-Unis. Ainsi, aux États-Unis, pour désigner 1012, on n\'utilise pas billion comme dans la majorité des pays, mais trillion. Aussi, afin d\'éviter toute confusion dans la dénomination des grands nombres, on tend de plus en plus à les exprimer en utilisant les puissances de 10, en l\'occurrence 1012.

www.granddictionnaire.com

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A \"billion\" in the U.S.A. means 1,000,000,000 (1e9); The British version of one billion means 1e12.
http://millennium.fortunecity.com/babar/269/205glo.html

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Note added at 13 mins (2005-03-11 13:14:45 GMT)
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But now I see that according to the Cambridge dictionary, this is now called \"trillion\", so I am not so sure anymore...
billion [Show phonetics]
noun [C]
1 1 000 000 000:
Cosmetics is a billion dollar industry.

2 UK OLD-FASHIONED 1 000 000 000 000
NOTE: This number is now called a trillion.

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Note added at 38 mins (2005-03-11 13:40:24 GMT)
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Since you \'re translating from French (into Hungarian, thus the English equivalent doesn\'t matter much here), you have to see what \"billion\" means in French. The Petit Robert, which I think we all agree is a more than reliable source, gives the following definition:
Les termes billion, trillion, quatrillion, quintillion et sextillion sont à éviter en raison des risques de confusion entre les nouvelles et les anciennes acceptions, encore en usage dans certains pays. 1. vx. Mille millions, soit 10(9) ->milliard, 2. (1948)MOD. Million de millions, soit 10(12) -> (téra).

The \"vx.\" (old) is Glen\'s proposal. Unless the author of your text wrote something wrong, the meaning is 10(12). Hope it a bit is clearer now.

Literally it means 10^12, as confirmed by Le Petit Robert etc. However, there is certainly a mistake: 2.3 x 10^13 euros is of the magnitude of the entire GDP of France in 20 years' time. Therefore billion, 10^9 (in Hungarian: milliárd) seems logical - and probably the confusion comes from the disparity between "billion" in English and French.
I would ask the client - most probably they will be happy to correct the original.

Résumé:
A French "billion" is (these days) the same as a(n old) British "billion" = 10^12.

Since the French have "milliard" (10^9), there is no confusion (in French) over "billion".

Look at the following numbers :

Et pour cause, depuis la réunification des deux Allemagnes en 1990, les Allemands de l'Ouest ont investi au total déjà 1,25 billions d'euros ou environ 89 milliards d'euros par an dans l'économie ex-communiste de l'Allemagne de l'Est (chiffres de Reuters du 7 avril 2004).[ http://www.belgischeunie.be/_FRA/antecedents/president1.htm]

1.25 (French billions) / 14 (2004 - 1990) = 0.0892857 (French billions) = 89,285,700,000 = 89 French milliards or 89 US/(UK) billions (just leave the change!)

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Note added at 10 hrs 35 mins (2005-03-11 23:37:32 GMT)
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More maths:

Contrary to someone\'s maths above (each nurse generating 53 million euros), the sum mentioned is that MANAGED by the ASSOCIATIONS (\"elles\"). We don\'t know if it is salaries, the value of assets, the benefits distributed to the needy, etc., all the above, or a fraction thereof. Nor is it clearly stated in the excerpt that the figure applies to a single year ...

If it is a mistake, it is a ghastly one. Frankly, I have trouble imagining a native French speaker making such an error given that they have a distinct word for (US/UK) billion (milliard). Is it a translation maybe? Written by a non-native speaker? Even so, the magnitude of the error, if error it is, is astonishing.

Whatever the person meant to say, or should have said, it says 10^12. It can certainly be highlighted and queried in the translation, or before it is returned.

To \"correct\" \"billions\" to \"milliards\" on the say-so of a rag-tag mob of translators would be a serious breach, IMO. Maybe it should read neither \"billions\" (10^12) nor \"milliards\" (10^9), but \"Millions\" (10^6)(simple typo) ... I think to say the writer \"obviously meant\" \"milliards\" is taking a big (10^3) risk ...