00:00The Trump administration is considering taking stakes in America's biggest defence contractors, Boeing and Palantir.
00:07Commerce Secretary Howard Ludnik says Pentagon leaders are talking about new ways to fund weapons production,
00:14pointing out that Lockheed already gets almost all of its revenue from the US government.
00:21Speaking on CNBC, Ludnik said Lockheed derives 97% of its revenue from the US government,
00:28calling the company basically an arm of the government.
00:32Shares of Lockheed rose about 1.6% after his remarks.
00:36Boeing gained close to 3%.
00:38Palantir gained 1.4% after revising early losses.
00:44This is not an isolated move.
00:46Washington recently bought nearly 10% of Intel, secured a golden share in US deal,
00:52and struck deals with NVIDIA, AMD and Rare Earth's company MP Materials.
00:56The White House says these steps strengthen national security and ensure control over critical industries.
01:03But the approach marks a sharp break from the past practice.
01:07Direct government ownership has usually been reserved for wartime or to rescue struggling firms.
01:13Critics warn it risks blurring the line between state and business,
01:16and could ultimately limit how companies compete and innovate.
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