UK factories keep cutting jobs; US jobless claims fall – business live

UK factories keep cutting jobs; US jobless claims fall – business live

Weekend speculation over a heavily discounted rights issue has seen Rolls Royce shares continue to decline this week, with management also reported to be in lengthy talks with a host of sovereign wealth funds. At the end of last week there was also speculation that the Kuwait Investment Office was also mulling a stake, which would have put the UK government in a somewhat tricky situation given it has a veto of sorts over any overseas shareholders.

Rolls Royce clearly needs the cash to shore up its balance sheet, given the sharp drop in revenues it has experienced in the last few months, and which is likely to continue for some time to come. The continued procrastination however is not helping, and last night's news that it had called off its