SEI Report
July 2026 – Space Economy Index (SEI)
INDEX COMPONENTS
Executive Summary
The Space Economy Index (SEI) recorded 90.9 for July 2026, using June 2026 (SEI = 100) as the official baseline month. The index indicates that the global space economy maintained healthy momentum during July, although overall economic activity moderated compared with the baseline period.
The underlying Composite Economic Score (CES) declined from 61.7 in June to 56.1 in July, representing a 9.1% decrease in monthly momentum. The moderation was primarily driven by lower investment activity and a slight reduction in orbital launch activity, while research and strategic competition remained strong contributors.
It is important to note that the SEI does not measure the absolute size of the global space economy. Instead, it measures how economic momentum changes from one month to another by evaluating operational activity, capital formation, scientific progress, and strategic competition.
Monthly Results
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| June 2026 CES (Baseline) | 61.7 |
| July 2026 CES | 56.1 |
| July 2026 SEI | 90.9 |
| Month-over-Month Change | −9.1% |
Understanding the SEI
The Space Economy Index is built from four equally weighted Data Pools, each representing a fundamental driver of the global space economy.
- Launch Activity
- Investment
- Space Research
- Space Competition
Each Data Pool is independently assessed on a standardized 0–10 scale before being combined into the monthly Composite Economic Score (CES).
Rather than relying on a single indicator, the SEI combines operational, financial, scientific, and strategic dimensions to provide a broader measure of economic momentum across the global space sector.
Data Pool Results
Launch Activity
Score: 4.81 / 10
The Launch Activity Data Pool measures the monthly level of global orbital launch operations.
For the first twelve monthly reports, SEI uses a fixed operational baseline of:
Baseline Launch Activity: 27 orbital launch attempts per month
This baseline represents the reference level of operational launch activity used for index normalization during the initial calibration period.
During July 2026, 26 orbital launch attempts were recorded worldwide, resulting in a Launch Activity score slightly below the baseline.
The Launch Data Pool measures operational activity only. It does not evaluate mission success, payload value, launch mass, or scientific importance. Each orbital launch attempt contributes equally to the monthly operational indicator.
Investment
Score: 2.61 / 10
The Investment Data Pool measures newly committed capital entering the global space economy.
For the initial reporting period, SEI uses a fixed baseline of:
Baseline Investment: USD 1.40 billion per month
The baseline represents the average monthly level of verified private investment and qualifying government development investment observed during the calibration period.
Only capital that creates future economic capacity is included.
Examples include:
- Private financing rounds
- Venture capital
- Strategic investments
- Government development programs
- Manufacturing expansion
- Research infrastructure
- New production facilities
Routine operating budgets, procurement contracts, acquisitions without new capital creation, launch service purchases, and previously announced funding are excluded.
Investment activity during July remained below the baseline level, reducing the overall Composite Economic Score.
Space Research
Score: 7.00 / 10
The Research Data Pool evaluates the pace of scientific and technological progress within the global space sector.
Unlike traditional R&D expenditure indicators, this Data Pool measures the significance of research outcomes rather than financial spending.
The assessment considers developments across several research dimensions, including scientific discoveries, technology development, mission-related experimentation, research infrastructure, and methodological advances.
Research remained one of the strongest contributors during July, reflecting continued technological progress across multiple national agencies, research institutions, and commercial organizations.
Space Competition
Score: 8.00 / 10
The Space Competition Data Pool measures changes in strategic and commercial competition within the global space economy.
The indicator evaluates developments such as national space initiatives, commercial competition, strategic announcements, international partnerships, and defense-related space activities that materially influence the competitive landscape.
Competition remained the strongest-performing Data Pool during July, indicating continued strategic investment and capability development across the international space sector.
What Drove July’s Result?
Several factors influenced the July 2026 SEI:
Lower Capital Formation
Verified investment activity was lower than the baseline month, making Investment the largest negative contributor to the monthly score.
Stable Launch Activity
Global launch operations remained near the baseline, with only one fewer orbital launch than the reference month, demonstrating continued operational stability.
Strong Research Output
Scientific research, technology development, and mission-related activities continued to support long-term innovation across the sector.
Elevated Strategic Competition
Governments and commercial organizations continued to strengthen strategic positioning through new programs, commercial initiatives, partnerships, and capability development.
Methodological Notes
The Space Economy Index follows several guiding principles:
- Equal weighting across all four Data Pools.
- Standardized 0–10 scoring for each Data Pool.
- Objective operational metrics where measurable.
- Structured expert assessment where qualitative evaluation is required.
- Global coverage across government, commercial, and research activities.
- Transparent inclusion and exclusion rules for quantitative indicators.
- Consistent monthly methodology to ensure comparability over time.
The complete SEI methodology is publicly available, while the detailed analytical framework and internal scoring engine remainproprietary to Etemion.
Looking Ahead
July 2026 marks the first monthly observation following the official baseline month. As additional reports are published, the SEI will begin building a continuous historical record of the global space economy, enabling more robust trend analysis and longer-term assessments of market momentum.