World’s largest arms producers increased revenue by 5.9% last year to record level

Stockholm: Revenues from sales of arms and military services by the 100 largest weapons-producing companies worldwide rose by 5.9 per cent last year, with demand boosted by the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and global and regional geopolitical tensions, according to a global report released on Monday.

The combined arms revenues of the three Indian companies in this list increased by 8.2 per cent to USD 7.5 billion on the back of domestic orders, says the report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

The Sweden-based global think-tank, in a statement, also shared a weblink that carried the list of “top 100 arms-producing and military services companies” in the world in 2024. The Indian firms which figure in it are -- Hindustan Aeronautics (at 44th spot), Bharat Electronics (58th), Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (91st). “Revenues from sales of arms and military services by the 100 largest arms-producing companies rose by 5.9 per cent in 2024, reaching a record USD 679 billion, according to new data released today by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI),” the statement said. Global arms revenues rose sharply last year, as demand was “boosted by the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, global and regional geopolitical tensions, and ever-higher military expenditure”.

For the first time since 2018, all of the five largest arms companies increased their arms revenues, SIPRI reported.

The top five companies in the list in that order are -- Lockheed Martin Corp. (the US), RTX (the US), Northrop Grumman Corp. (the US), BAE Systems (the UK) and General Dynamics Corp. (the US). “Although the bulk of the global rise was due to companies based in Europe and the United States, there were year-on-year increases in all of the world regions featured in the top 100. The only exception was Asia and Oceania, where issues within the Chinese arms industry drove down the regional total,” it said.

In 2024, the combined arms revenues of US arms companies in the top 100 grew by 3.8 per cent to reach USD 334 billion, with 30 out of the 39 US companies in the ranking increasing their arms revenues.