European defense stocks soar amid re-armament talk

MILAN — Amid a widening trans-Atlantic rift and prospects of a major re-armament across Europe , the stock value of several European defense companies surged to record highs on Monday.

European leaders held an emergency meeting in London on March 2 to discuss the urgency of boosting military spending and for the continent to rapidly build up its own defense over concerns that U.S. support could end.

The expectation of incoming higher arms spending was one of the factors that led to the European aerospace and defense sector stock index to rise a record high of 7.7% on March 3, as reported by Reuters.

The stocks of German, French, British, and Italian defense manufacturers were the ones that experienced the largest jumps. Italy’s Leonardo surged 16%, followed closely by Britain’s BAE Systems and Thales which gained more than 14% while German defense group Rheinmetall advanced 13,7%, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Stock prices generally reflect the overall opinion of market participants, such as investors, regarding a company’s current state, size and sales prospects. Increased share prices may indicate a positive sentiment while a drop can suggest the opposite.

EU member states have been scrambling over the last week to come up with a peace plan that could secure Ukraine’s future and put an end to Russia’s unlawful invasion of the war-torn country.

In the aftermath of an explosive meeting between the U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, on Feb. 28, there has been renewed pressure for European nations to move away from U.S. dependency for defense equipment.

Previously, many have turned to Israeli and South Korean defense manufacturers as their preferred alternative, although this changed following Israel’s offensive in Gaza, which has left some governments apprehensive.

Shifting away from U.S. weapons in the short-term is easier said than done and will require Europe to double down on supporting its national industries as well as diversifying its military partners.

That process seems to have already begun, as Israeli and South Korean defense stocks also rose this week. Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems recorded a surge of 8.1% on March 3, and the shares of South Korean manufacturers Hanwha Aerospace increased 16,7%, according to CNBC.

Elisabeth Gosselin-Malo was a Europe correspondent for Defense News. She covers a wide range of topics related to military procurement and international security, and specializes in reporting on the aviation sector. She is based in Milan, Italy.

米兰——在跨大西洋裂痕不断扩大以及欧洲大规模重新武装前景的背景下，几家欧洲国防公司的股价周一飙升至历史新高。

3月2日，欧洲领导人在伦敦举行紧急会议，讨论增加军费开支的紧迫性，以及欧洲大陆迅速加强自身防御的必要性，因为担心美国的支持可能会结束。

据路透社报道，市场预期军费开支将增加，这是导致欧洲航空航天和国防板块股票指数在3月3日上涨7.7%创历史新高的因素之一。

据《华尔街日报》报道，德国、法国、英国和意大利国防制造商的股票涨幅最大。意大利莱昂纳多公司股价飙升16%，紧随其后的是英国的BAE系统公司和泰雷兹公司，涨幅均超过14%，而德国莱茵金属公司股价上涨13.7%。

股价通常反映市场参与者（例如投资者）对公司现状、规模和销售前景的总体看法。股价上涨可能表明市场情绪乐观，而股价下跌则可能表明市场情绪悲观。

过去一周，欧盟成员国一直在争分夺秒地制定和平计划，以确保乌克兰的未来，并结束俄罗斯对这个饱受战争蹂躏的国家的非法入侵。

在美国总统唐纳德·特朗普和乌克兰领导人弗拉基米尔·泽连斯基 2 月 28 日举行了一次充满火药味的会晤之后，欧洲国家再次面临摆脱对美国国防装备依赖的压力。

此前，许多人将以色列和韩国的国防制造商视为首选替代品，但以色列对加沙发动进攻后，这种情况发生了改变，这让一些政府感到担忧。

短期内摆脱对美国武器的依赖说起来容易做起来难，这需要欧洲加倍支持本国工业，并使其军事合作伙伴多元化。

这一进程似乎已经开始，因为以色列和韩国的国防股本周也出现上涨。据CNBC报道，以色列国防承包商埃尔比特系统公司(Elbit Systems)的股价在3月3日飙升了8.1%，韩国制造商韩华航空航天公司(Hanwha Aerospace)的股价上涨了16.7%。

伊丽莎白·戈斯林-马洛曾任《防务新闻》欧洲通讯员。她的报道涵盖军事采购和国际安全等广泛领域，尤其擅长航空领域的报道。她常驻意大利米兰。