Overall M&A activity in 2011 got off to a really strong start but with the onset of the European debt crisis deals started to stall in the back half of the year.
Overall Deal Activity in North America:
- The recovery in M&A in North America got off to a strong start in 2011, with announced deals increasing largely in line with historical up-cycle rates and deal value increasing substantially above historical rates until the onset of the European debt crisis.
- Annualized using the run rate through July 2011, deal value and number of deals would have been up 67% and 37%, respectively.
- This recovery stalled after July 2011, with M&A activity experiencing a more severe decline than historical norms.
- Annualized using the run rate after August 1, 2011, deal value and number of deals would have been down 42% and 37% relative to the first part of 2011, respectively.
- For the entire year, 2011 deal value was up 38% to $448 billion and deal count at 145 was 16% higher than in 2010.
- Largest contributor to the growth in deal count was M&A activity in Canada, while most of the growth in deal value was US-based.
- 2011 was most similar to 2004 in terms of overall deal activity, though not in terms of the intra-year pattern.
Announced Deals in North America:
