1003 GMT - European defense stocks trade up as investors bet on increased military spending across the continent. Investors expect Germany to lead the way with a special defence spending budget that could go up to 200 billion euros, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank Ipek Ozkardeskaya writes. Rising military spending in Europe is becoming a major investment theme and is expected be complemented with massive spending in technology and industry, he adds. In Germany, Rheinmetall trades up 3.6% at 986.00 euros and has more than doubled over the past year. In the U.K., BAE systems is up 2.7% at 1,339.00 pence a share. Italy's Leonardo trades up 2.32% at 36.70 euros and France's Thales is up 1.1% at 187.75 euros. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 25, 2025 05:03 ET (10:03 GMT)
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