Elon Musk's SpaceX appears for the first time among the highest-earning arms manufacturers

BarcelonaWhile The wars in Gaza and Ukraine dragged the world to the historic peak of armed conflicts since World War IIMeanwhile, someone on the other side of the planet was rubbing their hands together: the arms manufacturers. In 2024, the top 100 arms-producing companies reached record revenues of $679 billion; an unprecedented figure that is almost 6% higher than the previous year, according to data published this Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

“Last year, global arms revenues reached the highest level ever recorded by SIPRI, as producers capitalized on very high demand,” says Lorenzo Scarazzato, a researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. The bulk of the increase has been concentrated among companies based in Europe and the United States, but revenues have risen on every continent except Asia and Oceania, where problems in the Chinese arms industry have caused a slight decline.

Of the top five companies—all of which have increased their revenue for the first time since 2018—four are American. And, for the first time, one has entered the top 100. SpaceX, the American company owned by Elon Muskwhich has doubled its arms revenues compared to 2023, reaching $1.8 billion. For Pere Ortega, a researcher at the Delàs Center, the company's entry is further evidence of the growing importance of telecommunications in this sector: "New technologies have gained impressive momentum in the way weapons are developed," he argues.

The emergence of Donald Trump on the international stage and the shift in European defense policy are closely linked. According to Ortega, the data confirms a trend that was already anticipated: "The war in Ukraine, the European rearmament plan, and Trump's proposals welcomed by NATO—according to which all countries must reach 5% military spending"— have driven up military spending. Thirty of the 39 American companies in the top 100 saw increases; while 23 of the 26 European arms companies listed reported profit growth. Growth in Europe has been the most pronounced: the continent's companies' revenues rose by 5.0 million, due to demand stemming from the war in Ukraine and the perceived Russian threat. They benefited from the Czech Munitions Initiative, a project led by the Czech government to supply Kyiv with artillery shells."

The exponential increase in arms production is not without risk. "History shows that all investment in weaponry ultimately leads to new conflicts," warns Ortega, who criticizes the fact that the growth in arms production only "benefits a few" and is detrimental "to the welfare state."

Supply problems

European states' investment in armaments has swelled the gears of the arms industry, but it hasn't prevented structural problems stemming from supply chains, which have been complicated by geopolitical frictions with Russia and China. "Access to materials could become an increasing challenge. In particular, dependence on critical minerals will likely complicate European rearmament plans," warned Jade Guiberteau Ricard, a researcher with SIPRI's Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, in a statement. For example, the trans-European company Airbus and the French firm Safran, which obtained half of their titanium supply from Russia until 2022, have had to find new suppliers; while the French company Thales and the German company Rheinmetall have been forced to restructure their supply chains following Chinese restrictions on the export of critical minerals.

Despite sanctions imposed by the European bloc, the two Russian companies on the list, Rostec and United Shipbuilding Corporation, increased their revenue by 23%, to a total of $31.2 billion. This growth is explained by the fact that domestic demand has more than compensated for the drop in arms exports, although Vladimir Putin's regime faces a severe shortage of skilled labor.

As for the Middle East, the boycott of Israel for the massacre of civilians in Gaza "appears to have had little impact on interest in Israeli weapons," according to SIPRI researcher Zubaida Karim. On the contrary: the three Israeli companies on the ranking grew by 16% and had a total turnover of $16.2 billion.