Rheinmetall CEO sees rapid increase in NATO countries' spending

DUESSELDORF, Germany (Reuters) -The CEO of German arms maker Rheinmetall expects a rapid increase in NATO defence spending, he said on Thursday, after meeting with the head of the alliance.

During the meeting last week, NATO chief Mark Rutte told him that member nations should increase their defence spending to 3.5% of their respective economic output, Armin Papperger said in an analysts' call.

Rutte has proposed that alliance members boost defence spending to 3.5% of GDP and commit a further 1.5% to broader security-related spending to meet U.S. President Donald Trump's demand for a 5% target, people familiar with the proposal told Reuters last week.

(Reporting by Matthias Inverardi, writing by Thomas Seythal; editing by Matthias Williams)