Global defense, aerospace firms captivate investors in 2023

By Burhan Sansarlioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The world’s leading defense and aerospace companies saw an upward trend in stock values in 2023, fueled by new projects, agreements and a surge in new orders.

While the Israel-Palestine conflict negatively affected the risk appetite in global markets, defense industry stocks saw significant upticks, despite the potential expansion of the conflict across the region causing concerns about other countries joining the conflict.

US-based aerospace and defense company General Dynamics was awarded a $1.3 billion contract to support the C4ISR battle management system of the Canadian Armed Forces, boosting the company’s third quarter earnings per share at $3.04, beyond expectations.

Boeing signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Indonesia for the purchase of 24 units of F-15EX multirole fighter jets.

In light of the developments, General Dynamics stocks went up 4.7%, and Boeing 36.8%.

-⁠European companies stand out in 2023

The Japanese, British and Italian defense ministers agreed to establish a coordination board for a joint fighter jet development project until 2035.

It was agreed to include experts from the main contractors of the Japanese defense contractor Mitsubishi Heavy, the British defense company BAE Systems and the Italian industrial group Leonardo SpA.

The UK Ministry of Defence and BAE Systems reached an agreement for the company to supply 155mm artillery shells and ammunition, an order worth $361 million.

BAE Systems also collaborated with Italian company Iveco Defence Vehicles to design an Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) for the US Marines.

French military aircraft maker Dassault Aviation reported that their priority in the near term is to produce Rafale fighter jets to meet new orders, as India announced the purchase of 26 units of Rafale fighter jets and Indonesia 42 units, with 24 confirmed orders.
News that Iraq is preparing to procure a C4I system, a data sharing network, consisting of Ground Master 400 type radars worth €600 million ($657 million) from French defense electronics maker, Thales, positively affected the company’s shares.

Thales signed a contract to supply the new GM400α long-range air surveillance radar with complete station infrastructure to the Royal Malaysian Air Force as a part of the defense cooperation between France and Malaysia.

Cathay Pacific, the flag carrier of China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, announced the purchase of 32 aircraft from European aircraft maker Airbus in 2023.

Airbus also signed a contract with the German army (Bundeswehr) for the purchase of 82 units of H145M multi-role helicopters.

News that the South Korean defense manufacturer Hanwha Aerospace will double its howitzer production capacity had a positive impact on the company’s share performance.

Given these circumstances, German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall AG’s stocks gained 54.3% and stocks of BAE Systems hiked 28.6%.

While stocks of Dassault Aviation and Thales climbed 13.3% and 12.3%, respectively, Leonardo SpA stocks soared a whopping 83.4%, whereas Airbus saw an increase of 25.9%.

As for Asian companies, Hanwha Aerospace rose 69.2% and Mitsubishi Heavy 57.5% in stock markets.

- US-based companies on decline

Defense conglomerate RTX Corporation shares fell 16.6%, the American arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin was off 6.8% and the defense contractor Northrop Grumman by 14.2%.

The companies, failing to satisfy investors, had problems related to costs, as the risk of a government shutdown harmed share performances.

Similarly, Chinese space program contractor, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), also recorded a decline of 25% in shares in 2023.

*Writing by Emir Yildirim