US M&A Activity Remains Strong Despite Concerns

Although the U.S. M&A market has remained relatively strong by historical standards so far in 2019, activity has softened compared to the higher levels in 2017 and 2018, continuing a trend that began in the second half of last year. The pace of overall deal count in the U.S. has decreased from the past two years, with the U.S. having its slowest first quarter by deal count in five years, according to figures from Mergermarket. However, overall deal value in the U.S. remained high in the first quarter of 2019 at $414 billion, falling just below 2018’s first-quarter record high of $415 billion and representing over half of global deal volume. Seven “megadeals” (i.e., deals valued at $10 billion or more) have been announced in the U.S. in the first quarter, one more than in the first quarter of 2018.