At the head, nothing moves. Five American groups – Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and General Dynamics – dominate the world ranking of armaments manufacturers, published Monday, December 7 by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri). This ranking was established using data from 2019, when the sales of arms and other military equipment by the top 25 players in the sector reached $ 361 billion (€ 298 billion), or 8.5% more than the top 25 in 2018.
Behind the leaders, the hierarchy evolves. Firstly because, for the first time, Sipri included Chinese manufacturers. Four of them, including Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), appear among the twenty-five global arms groups knowing that other Chinese companies could have been included. “But the information was insufficient”, specifies Sipri.
In one year, Dassault Aviation sales increased by 105%
These four representatives of the Middle Empire take 16% of the sales of the club of 25 world leaders and form the second national battalion behind the twelve flagships of the American armada and their 61% of market share. Together, the six Western Europeans (BAE Systems, Leonardo, Airbus, Thales, Dassault, Rolls Royce) account for 18%. The two Russians (Almaz-Antey, United Shipbuilding Corp) for 3.9%. Note the creation of EDGE, a player in the United Arab Emirates born in 2019 from the merger of twenty-five local companies, which is placed at 22e rank.
On the side of French industrialists, “A sharp rise in deliveries of the Rafale combat aircraft propelled Dassault Aviation into the top 25 for the first time”, underlines Lucie Béraud-Sudreau, director of the weapons and military equipment program at Sipri. In one year, sales of the tricolor aircraft manufacturer increased 105%, the highest percentage growth in the industry. At the same time, Naval Group, which was ranked twenty-first in 2018, lost its place in the club. Airbus arrives at the 13e place (10e in 2018) and Thales at the 14e (13e).
