New global defence ranking reveals industry giants as Africa misses top 100
The 2026 Defense News Top 100 has placed some of the world’s biggest defence manufacturers under the spotlight, with US companies continuing to dominate the upper end of the ranking while firms from China, Europe, Asia and the Middle East expand their presence. The annual ranking, released on August 31, 2026, places Lockheed Martin at […]
The 2026 Defense News Top 100 ranking of global defense manufacturers has highlighted the industry's dominance of large US companies, while firms from China, Europe, Asia and the Middle East have expanded their presence. Lockheed Martin topped the list after generating $72.14 billion in defense revenue in 2025, followed by RTX in second place with $46 billion, and General Dynamics at third with $39.4 billion.
Northrop Grumman held fourth place with $37.04 billion, while BAE Systems from Britain moved up to fifth with $36 billion. China’s Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) entered the ranking at seventh with $32.27 billion in defense revenue. Notably absent from the Top 100 is Africa, despite the continent's increasing military expenditures.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) reported that Africa's military spending rose by 8.5 percent in 2025 to $58.2 billion, marking the highest since at least 1988. North African nations contributed $35 billion, while sub-Saharan Africa spent $23.3 billion. However, no African defense manufacturer generated enough revenue to make the 2026 Top 100.
The 100th ranked company, Luxembourg-based SES, reported $726 million in defense revenue in 2025, which is still significantly lower than the billions generated by top-ranked companies. South Africa, which has one of the continent's most established defense industries, still lags far behind the industry leaders. Denel, a South African state-owned company, increased its revenue to R1.4 billion (Ksh11.2 billion) in the 2025/26 financial year, but this is still far below the levels seen in the Top 100.
The ranking underscores the significant gap between military expenditures and the ability of African nations to produce the necessary defense equipment. Despite expanding military budgets, African countries have yet to develop a defense industry with the revenue, production capacity, and international sales capacity required to join the global Top 100.
Written by urgent.news from People Daily Kenya's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
