MOSCOW, March 2. /TASS/. Shares of US defense industry companies advanced in premarket trading amid the escalation in the Middle East, according to data from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

As of 12:32 p.m. Moscow time, US defense stocks were up between 0.01% and 7.2%: Lockheed Martin Corporation — to $705 (+7.13%), RTX Corporation — to $217.2 (+7.2%), Northrop Grumman Corporation — to $762 (+5.19%), and General Dynamics Corporation — to $371.34 (+4%). At the same time, shares of aerospace corporation Boeing showed a marginal gain of 0.01% to $227.55.

The Russian stock market was reacting with gains in its benchmark index during the main trading session, according to Moscow Exchange data. As of 12:36 p.m. Moscow time, the MOEX index was up 1.39% at 2,838.02 points, while the dollar-denominated RTS index rose 1.39% to 1,156.98 points. Meanwhile, the yuan gained 2.7 kopecks to 11.229 rubles.

The United States and Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. The White House justified the attack by citing alleged missile and nuclear threats from Iran. At the same time, US leadership openly called on the Iranian population to rise up against their government and seize power.

As a result of the strikes, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several other senior figures in the leadership of the Islamic Republic were killed.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia were also hit.