Siemens and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries last week moved to improve on General Electric’s offer for engineering group Alstom. But the French government then raised the stakes by urging the rival suitors to come up with better offers. President Francois Hollande’s government also insists that any solution must protect French jobs and strategic influence over the company. Pictured above is the illuminated Alstom logo outside the group’s headquarters in Paris, France.