The United States and China dominate the global arms sales market in 2019, with a majority of the world’s top 25 arms manufacturers, according to a report released Dec. 7 by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). For the first time, a company from the United Arab Emirates is among the top 25 arms dealers in the Middle East.
The report said that the world’s top 25 arms manufacturers’ sales in 2019 reached $361 billion, up 8.5 percent, or 50 times the annual budget for UN peacekeeping operations.
Six U.S. companies – Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, General Dynamics and L3 Technology – along with China Aviation Industry Corporation, China Electronics Technology Group, and China North Industries Corporation, made the list of the world’s top 10 arms manufacturers. Chinese companies are ranked 6th, 8th and 9th. In Europe, only BAE Systems made the top 10, ranking No. 7, and China Weaponry Equipment Group made the top 25, ranking No. 24.
According to the report, the U.S. arms industry accounts for 61% of the market of the “world’s top 25 weapons manufacturers,” with 12 companies in the top 25. In 2019, sales for China’s four largest weapons manufacturers increased 4.8 percent over the previous year to $56.7 billion. However, the top 5 U.S. arms companies alone had sales of $166 billion in 2019.
This is the first time the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has included data from Chinese companies in its annual report on the world’s top 25 arms manufacturers. According to the report, Chinese companies have directly benefited from the PLA’s modernization process since 2015. The think tank has not included Chinese companies in the past because it did not have access to reliable data.
Reuters reports that China has been viewed by the West as more of a potential military threat in recent years than ever before. NATO must think more about how to deal with China and its rising military power, according to a report released last week on reforming NATO.
The ranking shows that the U.S. and China are two of the world’s largest military spenders, and both have the arms companies to match, said Belau Sudro, director of the Military Expenditure and Weapons Program at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
On the European side, European companies as a whole are at a similar level to U.S. and Chinese manufacturers. Europe’s Airbus is ranked 13th, France’s Hercules is 14th, and France’s Dassault swooped from 38th to 17th thanks to 2019 Rafale exports, making it one of the top 25.
In addition, EDGE from the United Arab Emirates enters the global top 25 at No. 22, the first time a company from a Middle Eastern country has entered the top 25.
Two Russian companies entered the global top 25, with the Diamond-Antey Space Defense Group dropping three places to 15th, and the United Shipbuilding Corporation of Russia dropping four places to 25th.
The report’s analysis shows that Russian arms companies were in better shape a few years ago thanks to extensive military modernization, but are now in significant decline. Sanctions resulting from Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and falling gas and energy prices have affected the Russian economy, necessitating a slowdown in arms modernization. As a result, Russia has seen a decline in orders, many projects have been put on hold, and revenues have fallen as a result.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), an independent analytical center for conflict, arms, arms control, and disarmament research founded in 1966, is one of the most authoritative institutions in this field.
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