April 16 (Reuters) - Aerospace and defense parts maker Arxis' shares surged nearly 36% ‌in their Nasdaq debut on Thursday, ‌signaling growing appetite for defense and industrial listings as ​geopolitical tensions escalate.

The Bloomfield, Connecticut-based company sold 40.5 million shares in an upsized initial public offering after pricing shares at $28 apiece, raising $1.13 ‌billion. The IPO ⁠valued Arxis at over $11 billion, based on the outstanding shares listed in ⁠its filings.

The stock opened for trading at $38 and was last up 32%.

Aerospace suppliers are ​increasingly turning ​to equity markets ​to fund expansion and ‌meet rising demand from commercial aviation and defense customers, with investor appetite for industrial listings holding up.

At the same time, geopolitical tensions, including wars in the Middle East and ‌Ukraine, have reshaped demand ​for aerospace and defense ​equipment as countries ​ramp up military spending, prompting ‌investors to shift toward industrial ​names seen ​as better positioned to weather the impact of these conflicts.

Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley ​and Jefferies ‌were the lead underwriters of the Arxis ​offering.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; ​Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)