LONDON: Global dealmaking has reached $2.6 trillion, the highest for the first seven months of the year since the 2021 pandemic-era peak, as a quest for growth in corporate boardrooms and the impact of a surge in AI activity has overcome the uncertainty caused by US tariffs.
The number of transactions to August 1 is 16 percent lower than the same time last year, but their value is 28 percent higher, according to Dealogic data, boosted by US megadeals valued at more than $10 billion.
They include Union Pacific Corp’s proposed $85 billion acquisition of small rival Norfolk Southern and OpenAI’s $40 billion funding round led by Softbank Group.
The upsurge will be a relief to bankers who began the year with expectations the administration of US President Donald Trump would lead to a wave of consolidation.
Instead, his trade tariffs and geopolitical uncertainty made companies pause until renewed confidence in corporate boardrooms and the US administration’s anti-trust agenda changed the mood.
