Consolidation | featured news

A growing number of small and medium-sized banks are merging as shrinking profit margins, tepid loan demand and low interest rates place pressure on their operations. Conditions are unlikely to improve as the Federal Reserve contemplates another round of stimulus that could push rates even lower.

The aerospace company is consolidating administrative staffs in Redondo Beach and El Segundo, but still has more than 850 open positions for skilled, technical jobs.

Northrop Grumman Corp., the region's second-largest private employer, is planning to lay off as many as 750 workers, most of them in Southern California, as it consolidates administrative staffs in El Segundo and Redondo Beach.