Since Santa’s still weeks away, Taiwan is crafting a $15B defense wishlist for Uncle Sam. The semiconductor-focused nation is in informal talks with Trump’s team about a “very aggressive [arms] package” as it beefs up its defenses against China’s growing military presence — a move that aligns with Trump’s broader push for US allies to increase their defense spending.

• Taiwan’s potential purchases may include ten retired warships, four Northrop GrummanNOC
  Advanced Hawkeyes, 400 Patriot missiles, and, controversially, 60 F-35 fighter jets — with Lockheed Martin’sLMT
  Aegis destroyer “near the top of the list.”
• The island’s strategic timing follows Trump’s monumental first-term approvals, including F-16 fighter jets and Abrams tanks — totaling $21B, triple Biden’s $7B approvals.

Beyond Taiwan: Meanwhile, European defense chiefs are bracing for renewed spending pressure from Trump, expecting to exceed NATO’s 2% GDP spending target. This shift already benefits EU defense contractors like LeonardoFINMF

and RheinmetallRNMBY

, whose order backlogs have swelled to €43B and €52B, respectively. However, Leonardo’s CEO mentioned he wouldn’t “be surprised if much of [EU’s] … spending ends up benefiting US companies.” With all this spending, it looks like Christmas came early for defense contractors.