UK's BAE upgrades forecasts as threat environment drives orders

By Sarah Young

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain's BAE Systems upgraded its annual earnings forecast after strong first-half results, as it continues to benefit from the heightened global threat environment which is driving countries to spend more on defence.

BAE's order book has been ticking up since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. This year, U.S. President Donald Trump's call for European countries to become more self-sufficient in defence prompted most NATO countries to pledge to significantly increase military budgets.

BAE said on Wednesday it expected its annual underlying earnings (EBIT) to rise 9% to 11% on last year's result, higher than the 8% to 10% growth it had previously forecast.

That came after earnings jumped 13% in the first six months of the year to 1.55 billion pounds ($2.07 billion), beating a consensus forecast of 1.52 billion pounds.

BAE, whose biggest markets are the U.S., Britain and Saudi Arabia, said in the first half of the year it started building a new Dreadnought class submarine for the UK, and the GCAP project to develop a new fighter jet with Italy and Japan progressed significantly.

"The breadth and depth of our geographic and product portfolio, together with our trusted track record of delivery, strengthen our confidence in the positive momentum of our business," CEO Charles Woodburn said in a statement.

BAE, whose share price is up 60% in 2025 so far, is likely to receive a new order for Eurofighter Typhoon military jets in the coming months after an agreement between Turkey and Britain was signed earlier in July.

($1 = 0.7492 pounds)

(Reporting by Sarah Young; editing by William James and Paul Sandle)