By Ed Ballard

President Trump's intervention in Venezuela has spurred concerns about mounting global insecurity-and given weapon makers a boost.

-- Shares in German armaments maker Rheinmetall-a symbol of Europe's push to boost military spending, were recently up 8%. The U.K.'s BAE Systems gained 4% and Italy's Leonardo rose nearly 6%.

-- Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy Industries, conglomerates that make military aircraft and other gear, closed up 8.4% and 7.9% respectively.

-- In South Korea, Hanwha Aerospace shares rose 7%, while Korea Aerospace Industries gained 6.5%.

-- In the U.S., shares in Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin both rose modestly premarket. RTX was little changed.

-- Many of these shares are building on big gains made in 2025. A boom in defense stocks was one of last year's key market trends.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 05, 2026 09:05 ET (14:05 GMT)

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