Investment bankers and lawyers are always trying to stir up mergers and acquisitions activity, talking hopefully of their belief that dealmaking is about to blossom. Perhaps there is some evidence that something is indeed stirring after the long winter of stagnation.
The past week has seen a flurry of large takeover deals, capped by Charter Communications’ $61bn hostile bid for Time Warner Cable and Suntory’s agreed $16bn acquisition of the US whiskey maker, Beam Inc.
It builds on a mini-trend during 2013. As Mergermarket recorded, the value of global M&A rose steadily in the first three quarters of 2013, after a depressed period from 2008 onwards as companies retrenched and deleveraged. The total value of deals grew by more than five per cent year on year over that period.