Last year’s big spending at the Pentagon will continue this year, with small business getting more opportunities to share in the wealth. Defense contract spending rose 6.7% in 2022, hitting its second highest annual total at $436 billion, according to a report from Bloomberg Government. The spike in unclassified procurement resulted from numerous factors including inflation, weapons exports, the federal COVID-19 response, the war in Ukraine and defense infrastructure spending. It represented a rebound from a $40 billion COVID-19 related dip in 2021. More