WASHINGTON ¨C U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to block defense contractors like RTX from paying dividends or buying back shares until they speed up weapons production, a rare presidential strike at Wall Street norms that sent defense stocks lower and signaled sweeping changes for America¡¯s military-industrial complex.
Trump and the Pentagon have criticized the defense industry for what they say are high costs and slow production and have promised dramatic changes to make production of war equipment more nimble.
¡°After years of misplaced priorities, traditional defense contractors have been incentivized ?to prioritize investor returns over the Nation¡¯s warfighters,¡± Trump said in his executive order released by the White House on Wednesday.
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