For Defense industry, it’s the best of times, it’s the worst of times

For the Defense industry, it seems as though now is the best of times, and worst of times.

Lockheed Martin Corp. said Wednesday that it plans to sell two units and reorganize two other subsidiaries as part of a strategic realignment. The Wall Street Journal reports that the company said it plans to divest most of the Enterprise Integration Group, or EIG, and Pacific Architects and Engineers Inc., or PAE, both part of the company’s Information Systems & Global Services business area.

Across the pond, spending is an issue of a different sort. The Financial Times reports that Britain must cut by at least a fifth its armed forces’ personnel, aircraft and vessels in order to maintain the current balance of capabilities under the most likely defence budget settlement, according to a leading think-tank. An authoritative study of the looming squeeze on defence spending by the Royal United Services Institute warns military chiefs to prepare for a “flat cash” settlement while urging the Treasury to avoid bringing forward deep cuts.

And military spending across the world continues to soar, despite the recession. The BBC reports that worldwide military expenditure reached $1,531bn (£1,040bn) last year, a 5.9% rise in real terms from 2008, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri).

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