Mei Ri Jing Ji Xin Wen·2026-01-08 11:23Group 1 - The core viewpoint of the news is that the U.S. is moving towards a potential global conflict, as indicated by the Pentagon's budget increase to $1.5 trillion, which reflects characteristics of a nation preparing for war [1] - Former President Trump proposed increasing the U.S. military budget from $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion for the fiscal year 2027, aiming to build a "dream army" [2] Group 2 - Following the news, U.S. defense stocks surged in pre-market trading, with Northrop Grumman up 7.26%, Lockheed Martin up 7.07%, and Raytheon Technologies up 5.23%, resulting in market value increases of $5.98 billion, $8.13 billion, and $13.02 billion respectively [4] - However, during intraday trading, Trump criticized defense contractors, leading to a decline in defense stocks, with Northrop Grumman down 5.5%, Lockheed Martin down 4.82%, and Raytheon down 2.45% [4] - Trump emphasized that defense companies must invest in modern production facilities and restricted executive compensation to $5 million annually, prohibiting dividends and stock buybacks until issues are resolved [6] - Northrop Grumman spent $1.17 billion on stock buybacks and paid $964 million in dividends over the past nine months, while Lockheed Martin allocated $2.25 billion for buybacks and $2.33 billion for dividends [6]