Rises 6 spots from No. 22 last year

Self-propelled howitzer exports drive ranking gain

KAI stake expansion clears Fair Trade Commission approval

'Korea's SpaceX' ambitions gain momentum

Hanwha Group's headquarters in Jangyo-dong, Seoul. [Hanwha]
Hanwha Group's headquarters in Jangyo-dong, Seoul. [Hanwha]

Hanwha has ranked 16th among global defense companies by defense sales, and the conglomerate is now setting its sights on breaking into the top 10 through a strategy of scale-up and consolidation across its defense ecosystem.

According to Defense News, a US defense and security trade publication, Hanwha recorded total defense sales of $10.44 billion in 2025, placing it 16th on the annual ranking. That marks a six-spot climb from 22nd the previous year. Defense sales surged by nearly $4 billion from $6.82 billion in 2024. Defense revenue accounted for roughly 20 percent of Hanwha's total sales last year.

Defense News ranks global defense companies based on their total defense sales from the prior year. Among South Korean firms, LIG Defense & Aerospace (52nd), Hyundai Rotem (61st) and Korea Aerospace Industries (74th) also made the top 100. The global top 10 comprised Lockheed Martin, RTX, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems, Boeing, Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), L3Harris, Leonardo and Airbus, in that order.

Hanwha's rise in the rankings is largely attributed to strong export growth in Hanwha Aerospace's K9 self-propelled howitzers and Chunmoo multiple-launch rocket systems. Hanwha Ocean's warship and submarine programs are expected to further expand the group's overall defense business. Korea Aerospace Industries, in which Hanwha is increasing its stake, is also seen as a factor that could influence the group's future ranking.

Hanwha is accelerating its ambition to become "Korea's SpaceX" after the Korea Fair Trade Commission approved its acquisition of KAI shares Monday. The Fair Trade Commission cleared a merger review of three Hanwha affiliates' combined acquisition of a 15.89 percent stake in Korea Aerospace Industries. The Hanwha affiliates currently holding KAI shares are Hanwha Aerospace (9.9 percent), Hanwha Systems (4.98 percent) and Hanwha Aerospace USA (1.01 percent). The commission determined that Hanwha has not yet reached a level of control that would allow it to exercise substantive influence over KAI's management.

Should Hanwha secure additional shares and eventually gain management control of KAI, it would be positioned to grow significantly larger within the global defense industry. The trend toward consolidation and scale is already well established in overseas markets. In the United States, major defense contractors merged and reorganized into five dominant players — Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon (RTX), General Dynamics and Northrop Grumman. Europe's Airbus was born from the merger of France's Aerospatiale, Germany's DASA and Spain's CASA, formed to counter American dominance in defense and aerospace.

Hanwha believes that combining with KAI to integrate launch vehicle, satellite, aviation platform and systems-integration capabilities would lay the groundwork for it to emerge as Korea's answer to SpaceX. The company recently unveiled a mid-to-long-term strategy called "AI Space Power Nation," under which it plans to invest 55 trillion won ($40 billion) by 2040 to build proprietary launch vehicles and satellites, a space AI data center, a low-earth-orbit communications network and a defense AI data center, establishing an integrated space and defense infrastructure.

"Hanwha has been exploring sustained cooperation with KAI with the aim of strengthening K-defense export competitiveness and fostering an aerospace industry ecosystem in South Gyeongsang Province, and the stake acquisition is part of that effort," a Hanwha official said. "We will continue to seek ways to cooperate with KAI to enhance K-defense competitiveness, advance South Korea's aerospace industry and contribute to regional economic vitality."


keg@heraldcorp.com