European defence stocks down after report of freeze on new Ukraine military aid
Updates stocks, adding context in paragraph 13
BERLIN, Aug 19 (Reuters) -European defence stocks fell on Monday, after the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung (FAS) newspaper said onSaturday that theGerman finance ministry would not approve additional applications for Ukraine military aid due to budget constraints.
A German government spokesperson reiterated Berlin's support for Ukraine for "as long as necessary" at a regular press conference on Monday, calling the FAS report "incorrect".
Shares in arms manufacturer Rheinmetall RHMG.DE slumped to the bottom of Germany's blue-chip DAX index .GDAXI, falling by as much as 5% before paring their losses by 1222 GMT, when they were trading 1.4% lower.
Hensoldt HAGG.DE, a maker of radars for the IRIS-T air defence system, and tank gearbox maker Renk R3NK.DE were down by 4.2% and 3% respectively.
European peers such as BAE Systems BAES.L, Saab Ab SAABb.ST, Thales TCFP.PA and Leonardo LDOF.MI fell between 1% and 4%.
No new requests for money for Ukraine will be approved at the request of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, FAS reported, citing a finance ministry letter from Aug. 5.
In the letter obtained by Reuters on Monday, the finance ministry says new measures are only allowed this and next year if the financing has already been secured.
"Please ensure that the upper limits are observed," ends the letter addressed to Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
Around 8 billion euros ($8.8 billion) is already earmarked for Ukraine's military in 2024, and the budgeted 4 billion euros for 2025 is already overbooked, according to the weekly. "The pot is empty," FAS quoted a government source as saying.
The 2024 and 2025 budget plans have not changed, German government sources told Reuters.
The planned financial aid for Ukraine would be halved to around 4 billion euros in 2025 because additional funds from the G7's $50 billion loan plan should be available from November, the sources said.
The German government has said that instead of spending taxpayers' money, it wants to use proceeds from frozen Russian assets for further Ukraine aid, in coordination with its Group of Seven (G7) partners.
While Berlin has roughly halved its budget for Ukraine aid next year, fellow G7 member Britain has committed to maintaining its support package for Ukraine, albeit at the lower level of 3 billion pounds annually.
Rheinmetall's spokesperson declined to comment on the German budgetary discussions, adding that it will continue its partnership with Ukraine.
A spokesperson for Hensoldt said the FAS report was "blown out of proportion" and that the firm did not see any backlash from it for its business.
Budget negotiations between Germany's three-party coalition were difficult and protracted as large spending requirements for climate, social measures and infrastructure clashed with constitutionally enshrined limits for new debt.
Last month, the leaders of the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Liberals agreed on a 481 billion euros draft budget and only on Friday reached a deal to narrow its deficit target.
($1 = 0.9061 euros)
Reporting by Andrey Sychev, additional reporting by Paolo Laudani, Editing by Miranda Murray, Kirsti Knolle, Conor Humphries, Sharon Singleton and Giles Elgood
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