Sales by major arms suppliers strengthened last year due to the war in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip and tensions in Asia, with notable increases for manufacturers in Russia and the Middle East, according to a report released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute – known as SIPRI – on Monday.
According to the institute’s report, total sales of arms and military services to the world’s 100 largest arms companies reached $632 billion last year, an increase of 4.2 percent.
Arms sales had declined in 2022, due to the inability of these global giants to meet the increase in demand, but many of them were able to restart production in 2023, according to the report.
As proof of this increase in demand, each of these 100 companies achieved individual sales of more than $1 billion for the first time last year.
In a statement, Lorenzo Scarazzato, a researcher on military spending and arms production in Siberia, said: “There was a notable increase in arms sales in 2023, and this trend is expected to continue in 2024.”
He added that sales of the world’s 100 largest groups “do not yet reflect the full extent of demand and that a large number of companies have launched recruitment campaigns, which reflects their optimism for the future.” .
The SIPRI Institute noted that small manufacturing companies were more effective in meeting this new demand linked to the wars in the Gaza Strip and Ukraine, growing tensions in East Asia and rearmament programs in other countries. regions.
The French news agency quoted Nan Tian, director of the military spending program, as saying that a number of these companies specialize in a single component or build systems that require a single supply chain, which allows them to react more quickly.
American groups, the world’s leading producers, recorded an increase in their sales of 2.5% in 2023, and they still represent half of global arms revenues, since 41 American companies occupy the list of the 100 largest global companies.
On the other hand, Lockheed Martin and RTX, the two largest arms groups in the world, recorded a drop in sales.
They “often rely on complex, multi-tiered supply chains, making them vulnerable to supply chain challenges that have continued into 2023,” Tian said.