M&A Deals Could Top $4 Trillion in 2015 - Deals Intelligence

2015 is shaping up to be the strongest period for mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. in at least 35 years, according to data from Thomson Reuters Deals Intelligence. M&A activity for United States targets totaled $1.5 trillion during the first nine months of this year, an increase of 46% compared to the level of activity seen during the first nine months of last year, and the strongest period for U.S. M&A since records began in 1980. Worldwide, M&A activity is up 32%, the strongest nine months for deal making since 2007, according to Deals Intelligence. ‘It’s really very much the high end, the big, transformational, strategic mega-deals that are across sectors and across regions,’ said Matthew Toole, Director of Deals Intelligence. The data showed a dramatic increase in the number of deals over $10 billion. In both the second and third quarters, M&A totaled more than $1 trillion, marking the first consecutive trillion-dollar plus quarters in fifteen years. One of the busiest industries for acquisition activity has been the energy space, as companies responded to declining commodity prices. ‘I think there’s a lot of energy companies that are looking to see how the whole commodity story is going to play out, what they might need to do,’ said Toole. Acquisition activity was also strong in the healthcare and technology sectors.