Global M&A hits US$1 trillion for fourth quarter

With AstraZeneca’s US$38.8 billion bid for Alexion Pharmaceuticals, global merger and acquisition activity will top US$1 trillion for the second straight quarter, Refinitiv says.

The proposed pharma mega-merger would be the seventh-largest deal of the year, which has included 111 deals valued in excess of US$5 billion.

This represents an increase in mega-merger activity from 2019, and is the fourth-highest annual total on record, Refinitiv said.

Last year, there were 97 deals that topped the US$5-billion mark.

Since July, there has been US$2.1 trillion in deal activity — which would be the second-highest total on record for the second half of a year, Refinitiv said.

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