As the federal government expands overseas sales of firearms, Sig Sauer, a gun maker in New Hampshire, has emerged as the leading exporter of pistols.
"The economic and political forces driving those sales were set in motion after the US assault-weapons ban expired in 2004. But they've reached new heights since gunmakers in 2020 won a decade-long battle to streamline export approvals," Bloomberg said.
After the ban was lifted, exports of semiautomatics skyrocketed to 3.7 million units -- more than doubling in the past six years.
The global push has led to more pistols exported than rifles.
Thailand, Canada, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, and Belgium are the largest customers of US semiautomatic firearms.
In 2010, Sig CEO Ron Cohen said, "We have clearly defined our path to growth as being in emerging markets and developing countries." Since then, Sig has become the largest US exporter of guns, exporting more than 935,000 firearms in the past decade.
In 2017, 2018, and 2020, Sig's exports topped the entire industry's totals.
Sig accounted for 18% of all pistol exports between 2017-2021.
Bloomberg's note on Sig's rise has an obvious anti-gun slant. The reason, well, there's a disclaimer at the bottom of the article: "Everytown for Gun Safety, which advocates gun-safety measures, is backed by Michael Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News parent Bloomberg LP."
