US companies' arms sale more than half of world's top 100 companies combined: SIPRI

STOCKHOLM - The United States once again hosted the highest number of arms companies ranked in the top 100, as the arms sales of the 41 US companies accounted for 54 percent of world's top 100's total arms sales, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in a report on Monday.

According to the Institute's latest report on the global arms sales in 2020, US companies continue to dominate the ranking. Together, the arms sales of the 41 US companies amounted to $285 billion, an increase of 1.9 percent compared with 2019. And since 2018, the top five companies in the ranking have all been based in the United States.

The report points out that the US arms industry is undergoing a wave of mergers and acquisitions. To broaden their product portfolios and thus gain a competitive edge when bidding for contracts, many large US arms companies are opting to merge or acquire promising ventures.

"This trend is particularly pronounced in the space sector," said Alexandra Marksteiner, researcher with the SIPRI Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. "Northrop Grumman and KBR are among several companies to have acquired high-value firms specialized in space technology in recent years."

Globally, sales of arms and military services by the industry's 100 largest companies totalled $531 billion in 2020, an increase of 1.3 percent in real terms compared with the previous year. And this number is 17 percent higher than in 2015, marking the sixth consecutive year of growth in arms sales by the top 100.

The report also points out that the arms sales have increased even as the global economy contracted by 3.1 percent during the first year of the pandemic.

"The industry giants were largely shielded by sustained government demand for military goods and services," said Marksteiner, "In much of the world, military spending grew and some governments even accelerated payments to the arms industry in order to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis."

Headquartered in Stockholm, SIPRI's research covers international conflicts, armaments, arms control and disarmament.