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Defense Industry News 2 January 2026 - 5 January 2026

Tokyo stocks today: Nikkei starts 2026 higher as TEPCO, chip and defense names lead

Tokyo stocks today: Nikkei starts 2026 higher as TEPCO, chip and defense names lead

TOKYO, January 5, 2026, 02:10 ET Japan’s Nikkei 225, a price-weighted index of blue-chip shares, jumped about 3% on Monday in Tokyo’s first session of 2026 as investors chased chip and defense stocks and looked past U.S. action in Venezuela. “The market turned risk-on as if uncertainties and threats had been removed,” said Kazuaki Shimada, head of research at IwaiCosmo Securities. The Nikkei closed up 3.03% at 51,865, with Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) leading gainers on a 9.23% surge. ( The Business Times) Currency traders echoed that appetite for risk and ran with a stronger dollar. The greenback hit two-week
5 January 2026
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Northrop Grumman stock ends 2026’s first session higher — what could move space and defense shares next

Northrop Grumman stock ends 2026’s first session higher — what could move space and defense shares next

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 13:22 ET — Market closed Northrop Grumman shares closed up 2.7% on Friday, the first trading day of 2026, as space and defense stocks tracked a firmer tone in industrials and broader “buy-the-dip” positioning. Marketwatch Why it matters now: defense contractors often trade on a mix of budget expectations, geopolitical headlines and interest-rate outlooks, and that mix is shifting into the first full week of the new year. Reuters’ “week ahead” agenda points to Venezuela developments and a heavy U.S. data calendar as potential volatility triggers when trading resumes Monday. Reuters The timing also matters
4 January 2026
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AeroVironment stock jumps nearly 6% into the weekend as Iran headlines lift defense names

AeroVironment stock jumps nearly 6% into the weekend as Iran headlines lift defense names

NEW YORK, January 4, 2026, 04:19 ET — Market closed Shares of AeroVironment Inc (AVAV.O) ended Friday up 5.8% at $256.19, leading gains in U.S. defense names. The stock traded between $241.81 and $257.89 in the session, with about 940,000 shares changing hands. The move matters now because investors have been treating smaller defense-technology companies as a fast-twitch read on geopolitical risk and the Pentagon’s growing focus on unmanned systems, where procurement can shift quickly with events. That sensitivity can cut both ways. A calm news cycle can drain the bid from defense trades just as quickly as it arrived,
4 January 2026
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RTX stock jumps to start 2026 as defense names catch a bid; jobs report, earnings loom

RTX stock jumps to start 2026 as defense names catch a bid; jobs report, earnings loom

NEW YORK, January 4, 2026, 04:19 ET — Market closed RTX Corp shares ended the first trading session of 2026 higher, tracking broad gains across U.S. aerospace and defense names as investors returned from the holiday lull. The move matters because January’s early data-heavy calendar can reset expectations for interest rates and growth, which often drives positioning across cyclicals and industrials. Reuters It also comes as defense stocks globally have been drawing renewed inflows, with investors leaning into companies tied to government spending and long-cycle backlogs. Reuters RTX closed up 2.1% at $187.25 on Friday after trading between about $182
4 January 2026
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Lockheed Martin stock jumps near $500 to start 2026 as defense names catch a bid on contracts, geopolitics

Lockheed Martin stock jumps near $500 to start 2026 as defense names catch a bid on contracts, geopolitics

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 04:05 ET — Market closed. Lockheed Martin shares finished the first U.S. trading session of 2026 up 2.77% at $497.07 on Friday, outperforming a cluster of large aerospace and defense peers. MarketWatch The move matters because Lockheed has started the year with investors still debating whether big primes can grow cash flow as the Pentagon leans harder on delivery performance, fixed-price programs and affordability. Friday’s pop also pushed the stock back toward the psychologically important $500 level after a choppy finish to 2025, leaving it still below its 52-week high of about $516 set in
4 January 2026
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RTX stock jumps 2% as Iran headlines lift defense contractors — what to watch next week

RTX stock jumps 2% as Iran headlines lift defense contractors — what to watch next week

NEW YORK, Jan 3, 2026, 17:54 ET — Market closed RTX Corp (NYSE: RTX) shares rose 2.1% on Friday to close at $187.25, up $3.83. The aerospace-and-defense contractor traded between $182.20 and $187.68, with about 3.3 million shares changing hands. The move matters now because the first full trading week of 2026 opens with geopolitical risk back on traders’ screens. Weekend headlines can set the tone for defense names when U.S. markets reopen. RTX sits at the crossroads of military demand and commercial aerospace cycles through its Raytheon defense unit, Pratt & Whitney jet engines and Collins Aerospace components. That
4 January 2026
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AeroVironment (AVAV) stock jumps nearly 6% as Iran headlines lift defense shares — what to watch next

AeroVironment (AVAV) stock jumps nearly 6% as Iran headlines lift defense shares — what to watch next

NEW YORK, Jan 3, 2026, 17:12 ET — Market closed AeroVironment shares rose 5.9% to $256.19 in Friday’s session, the first trading day of 2026. The stock finished near the top of its intraday range. The drone maker led a broader lift in defense shares after President Donald Trump warned the U.S. might intervene in Iran if authorities used lethal force against protesters, according to Investors.com. The timing matters because AeroVironment is coming off a December results and guidance reset that left investors focused on whether growth and profitability arrive on schedule in the second half of the fiscal year.
3 January 2026
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Stocks to watch next week after U.S. strike on Venezuela: energy and defense names in focus

Stocks to watch next week after U.S. strike on Venezuela: energy and defense names in focus

NEW YORK, January 3, 2026, 13:33 ET — Market closed U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that U.S. forces attacked Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro, a shock development that sets up a headline-driven week for markets when U.S. trading resumes on Monday.  Reuters For investors, the immediate question is whether the operation tightens near-term crude supply or speeds a longer-run shift in Venezuela’s oil sector. Venezuela sits on some of the world’s largest oil reserves, and Washington’s policy stance has already been a central variable for how much of that crude reaches the water.  Reuters U.S. stocks are
3 January 2026
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Defense and space stocks jump to start 2026 as Boeing, Rocket Lab lead gains

Defense and space stocks jump to start 2026 as Boeing, Rocket Lab lead gains

NEW YORK, January 3, 2026, 13:12 ET — Market closed U.S. aerospace, defense and space-linked stocks rose sharply on Friday, led by Boeing and Rocket Lab, as investors returned to the group on the first trading day of 2026. MarketWatch The move matters because the sector sits at the intersection of two market themes that have been driving flows into January: geopolitical risk and government-backed demand. Defense contractors typically draw buyers when investors want revenue visibility, since much of their work is tied to multi-year contracts. Investing The rally also came as Wall Street steadied after a late-December slide, with
3 January 2026
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Lockheed Martin stock jumps nearly 3% to start 2026 — contracts, rates and earnings in focus

Lockheed Martin stock jumps nearly 3% to start 2026 — contracts, rates and earnings in focus

NEW YORK, January 3, 2026, 05:58 ET — Market closed Lockheed Martin Corp stock rose 2.8% at its last close, ending at $497.07 as U.S. markets wrapped the first trading day of 2026. The move matters now because investors are re-positioning for January with defense spending and contract flow back in focus, even as the broader market takes its cues from interest rates. For Lockheed, the world’s largest defense contractor, the stock often tracks both the drumbeat of Pentagon awards and the bigger question of where bond yields are headed. On Friday, Lockheed outpaced the broader market and most large
3 January 2026
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Ondas stock jumps after rebrand plan, West Palm Beach HQ shift and fresh defense orders

Ondas stock jumps after rebrand plan, West Palm Beach HQ shift and fresh defense orders

NEW YORK, Jan 2, 2026, 6:37 PM ET — After-hours Shares of Ondas Holdings Inc (ONDS) rose 13.1% to $11.02 in after-hours trading on Friday after the company said it has moved its corporate headquarters to West Palm Beach, Florida, and plans to change its corporate name to Ondas Inc. The stock traded between $9.92 and $11.04 earlier in the day and volume was about 136 million shares. SEC The rebrand and relocation arrive as Ondas tries to sharpen its pitch as a defense and security technology supplier, a theme that can move valuations quickly in smaller drone and counter-drone
3 January 2026
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Boeing (BA) stock jumps today as $2.7 billion Apache support deal kicks off 2026 trading

Boeing (BA) stock jumps today as $2.7 billion Apache support deal kicks off 2026 trading

NEW YORK, Jan 2, 2026, 11:27 ET — Regular session Boeing shares climbed about 2.7% on Friday, buoyed by renewed risk appetite on Wall Street and attention on a fresh U.S. defense award. The stock was last up $5.79 at $222.91 in New York trading. Reuters The move matters because Boeing is entering 2026 still under investor pressure to prove it can translate a large backlog into steadier deliveries and cash. Defense and services contracts can offer longer-dated revenue visibility even when commercial aircraft output is constrained. Reuters Broader markets also helped. “The next Fed Chair is probably going to
2 January 2026
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Stock Market Today

Lloyds share price steadies after buyback update and BoE rate jitters — what to watch next week

Lloyds share price steadies after buyback update and BoE rate jitters — what to watch next week

7 February 2026
LONDON, February 7, 2026, 08:48 GMT — Market closed Lloyds Banking Group shares finished Friday higher after the lender flagged another round of share buybacks, helping to steady the stock at the end of a volatile two-day swing driven by shifting expectations for UK interest rates. With London markets closed for the weekend, the focus moves to Monday’s open and whether rate-cut pricing keeps easing pressure on bank earnings. Lloyds is a UK-focused lender, and investors tend to treat it as a clean play on domestic growth, mortgages and the direction of Bank Rate. That makes the stock quick to
Vodafone shares steady up after Q3 wobble — Germany, buyback and next results now set the tone

Vodafone shares steady up after Q3 wobble — Germany, buyback and next results now set the tone

7 February 2026
Vodafone shares rose 1.47% to 110.60p Friday, recovering part of Thursday’s 4.68% drop after a Q3 update. Group revenue climbed 6.5% to €10.5 billion, but Germany’s 0.7% service revenue growth missed some forecasts. Vodafone launched a new €500 million buyback tranche, bringing total buybacks since May to €3.5 billion. Investors remain focused on Germany’s pace and cash flow execution.
NatWest Group stock: buyback filing and Rightmove mortgage deal set up a busy week

NatWest Group stock: buyback filing and Rightmove mortgage deal set up a busy week

7 February 2026
NatWest shares closed up 1.45% at 659.4 pence Friday, buoyed by a buyback of 797,428 shares and a new digital mortgage deal with Rightmove. The Bank of England held rates at 3.75% but signaled possible cuts, with markets pricing in two reductions for 2026. NatWest plans to expand its Accelerator community to 50,000 members by 2026. Annual results are due Feb. 13.
Unilever share price holds at 5,250p as results week looms — what investors watch next

Unilever share price holds at 5,250p as results week looms — what investors watch next

7 February 2026
Unilever shares closed flat at 5,250p in London Friday, underperforming the FTSE 100’s 0.6% gain. The company issued 4.2 million new shares for employee plans, bringing total shares to over 2.18 billion. Investors await Q4 and full-year results on Feb. 12, with analyst consensus pointing to 3.9% Q4 sales growth. Unilever’s U.S. ADR rose 0.8% to $72.12.
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