The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that its is one of the harshest realities of war: For some sectors of the economy, armed conflict drives value. The Globe's Gus Carlson writes that in the days after the Hamas attacks on Israel, shares of major U.S. defence companies soared, adding more than $23-billion (U.S.) to the sector's market capitalization, as investors looked to them as harbingers of increased arms spending by governments in the event of a prolonged conflict. Among the most active earlier this week: Lockheed Martin, which makes the F-35 Lightning II fighter jets used by the Israeli military, as well as Sikorsky and Black Hawk helicopters; Northrop Grumman, which makes submarines and combat vehicles; RTX; General Dynamics; Boeing. Together, shares of these and similar companies in the sector rose by an average of 6.5 per cent. Northrop Grumman led the pack, surging more than 11 per cent. Call them warmonger investments -- or even necessary evils. Whatever the label, defence-related stocks are a divisive force in the psyche of the markets: despised by environmental, social and governance investors, but embraced by investors who see their value in a world racked by geopolitical unrest.