M&A at a Glance - 2018 Year-End Roundup

2018 was an up-year for M&A as compared to 2017, notwithstanding some weakness toward the year’s end. Global deal volume for the year was $3.92 trillion and U.S. deal volume was $1.59 trillion (up 14.7 percent and 15.5 percent, respectively, from 2017). Sponsor-related deal volume for the year was $947.22 billion globally and $435.24 billion in the U.S. (up 6.3 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively). Strategic deal volume was $2.98 trillion globally and $1.15 trillion in the U.S. (up 17.6 percent and 22.0 percent, respectively). The average value of U.S. public mergers increased by 5.2 percent from 2017 levels, from $3.39 billion to $3.56 billion, however the average value of the ten largest U.S. public mergers declined from prior levels for the second year in a row, from $39.09 billion to $34.26 billion. Despite these overall increases, month-over-month declines in both November and December may foreshadow possible softness in 2019.