USA Global Champion in Military Spending

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, there was a 1.1% increase in global military spending in 2017.

The global rise was driven partially by a $9.6 billion hike in U.S. weapons expenditure, the USA is the world’s largest arms spender by a wide margin.

Total arms sales among the world’s 100 largest defense contractors topped $398 billion in 2017 after climbing for the third consecutive year.

Russia, one of the countries with the fastest growing military’s over the last decade, became the second largest arms-producing country, overtaking the United Kingdom for the first time since 2002.

However, the United States is home to 5 of the world’s 10 largest defense contractors, and American companies account for 57% of global arms sales by the world’s 100 largest defense contractors, based on SIPRI data.

Maryland-based Lockheed Martin, the largest defense contractor in the world, is estimated to have had $44.9 billion in arms sales in 2017 through deals with governments all over the world.

The company drew public scrutiny after a bomb it sold to Saudi Arabia was dropped on a school bus in Yemen, killing 40 boys and 11 adults.

Boeing made $26.9 billion in arms sales in 2017, according to SIPRI, the second most of any company worldwide. Defense contracts accounted for 29% of Boeing’s revenue, a far smaller share than most companies among world’s 10 largest military contractors.

The third largest defense contractor in the world, Raytheon is a missile defense and long-range precision weapons maker headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Through customers in over 80 countries, the company reported $25.3 billion in revenue in 2017, 94% of which came from arms sales and defense contracts.

The United States and many of its allies rely on the company’s radars and recently outdated ballistic missile interceptors as part of their defense strategy.

BAE Systems is the largest defense contractor based in the United Kingdom, and the fourth largest in the world. The company builds ground combat vehicles.

The Challenger 2, is the main battle tank for both the British Army and Royal Army of Oman, but are also sold for different situations and clients.

While many other companies on this list also have a lucrative deals with private and commercial clients, 98% of BAE Systems’ 2017 revenue came from arms deals.

The company now known as Northrop Grumman was founded in Hawthorne, California, in 1939. The company built its first aircraft, the N-3PB patrol bomber, for the Norwegian Air Force in 1940.

According to SIPRI, Northrop Grumman made $22.4 billion in arms sales in 2017, the fourth most of any company in the United States and the fifth most of any company worldwide.

Established in 2002 under the direction of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Almaz-Antey is the largest known state-owned defense contractor, as measured by revenue, in the world.

Due to increasing domestic and foreign demand, Almaz-Antey’s arm sales rose 17% from 2016 to 2017, one of the largest increases of any defense company.

USA Today / ABC Flash Point News 2019.