Global M&A hits $2.6 trillion peak year-to-date, boosted by AI

Global dealmaking has reached $2.6 trillion, the highest for the first seven months of the year since the 2021 pandemic-era peak, as a quest for growth in corporate boardrooms and the impact of a surge in Al activity has overcome the uncertainty caused by US tariffs.

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The number of transactions to August 1 is 16 per cent lower than the same time last year, but their value is 28 per cent higher, according to Dealogic data, boosted by US megadeals valued at more than $IO billion. They include Union Pacific Corp's proposed $85 billion acquisition of small rival Norfolk Southern and OpenAl’s $40 billion funding round led by Softbank Group. The upsurge will be a relief to bankers who began the year with expectations the administration of US President Donald Trump would lead to a wave of consolidation.

Instead, his trade tariffs and geopolitical uncertainty made companies pause until renewed confidence in corporate boardrooms and the US administration's antitrust agenda changed the mood.