TORONTO, July 5 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will announce on ‌Monday the preferred bidder in ‌a contract to build 12 submarines for Canada's ​navy, the Globe and Mail reported on Sunday.

The announcement will be made before Carney heads to a NATO leaders’ summit ‌scheduled for Tuesday ⁠and Wednesday in Turkey, the report said, citing sources.

The Prime ⁠Minister's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The two contenders ​for the ​contract are ​Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), which ‌is a German-Norwegian partnership, and South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean.

Canada, under pressure from the United States to increase defense spending, has hit NATO's military spending ‌target of 2% of ​GDP earlier than originally ​planned. NATO ​leaders have agreed to spend ‌5% of GDP on ​defense and ​security-related investments by 2035.

Canada is also aiming to announce around 10 founding ​nations for ‌a global defense bank at the ​NATO summit.

(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing ​by Edmund Klamann)