India’s Defence Firms See 8.2% Growth in Arms Revenues, Says SIPRI
HAL, BEL and Mazagon Dock drive India’s defence revenue growth amid global arms sales surge
India, Dec 02 : India’s three largest defence manufacturers Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDSL) reported a combined 8.2 per cent rise in arms revenues, reaching USD 7.5 billion, according to the latest data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
The figures are part of SIPRI’s annual Top 100 list of global arms producers, released on Monday. Only these three Indian firms featured in the rankings, each showing distinct trends in growth, orders, and global positioning.
Performance of Indian Defence Companies
HAL remains India’s largest defence producer with arms revenue of USD 3.8 billion, ranking 44th globally, a slight drop from 42 last year. Defence products contributed 95 per cent of HAL’s total revenue of USD 4 billion, despite a minor 0.3% revenue decline.
BEL recorded the strongest growth, with arms revenue rising 23.6% to USD 3.8 billion, driven by Indian government orders for radars and electronic warfare systems. BEL moved up ten spots in global rankings, from 68 to 58, with defence products accounting for 89.9% of total revenue of USD 2.75 billion.
MDSL, which manufactures submarines and warships, posted USD 1.12 billion in defence revenue, up 9.38% year on year, maintaining its global rank of 91. Defence accounted for 89.8% of its total revenue of USD 1.37 billion.
Global Context
Globally, the SIPRI report shows that arms revenues of the Top 100 companies grew 5.9%, reaching a record USD 679 billion in 2024. The growth was largely driven by European and American firms.
Lockheed Martin led the rankings with USD 62 billion in arms sales, followed closely by other US companies.
BAE Systems of the UK was fourth, while Rostec (Russia) and AVIC (China) ranked seventh and eighth, respectively.
According to SIPRI, India’s overall defence spending in 2024 was USD 86.23 billion, compared with Pakistan at USD 10.165 billion and China at USD 313.67 billion.
