Published on Capital Value, April 16, 2010 http://www.capitalvue.com/
The value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions on mainland China and Hong Kong in the first quarter of 2010 surged 240 percent year-on-year, reports 21st Century Business Herald, citing a report by MergerMarket.
According to statistics by MergerMarket, 144 M&A transasctions valued at a total of $56.9 billion were recorded in the first quarter. In terms of transaction volume and transaction value, the year-on-year growth rates hit nine percent and 2.4-fold respectively.
The increases in M&A activity were attributed to several large M&A transactions, including Prudential Insurance’s acquisition of American International Assurance's Asian arm for $35.5 billion and Geely Automobile’s takeover of Volvo.
In the first quarter, the value of M&A transactions in the Asia-Pacific surged 21-fold year-on-year to $37.5 billion.
In the same period, the value of overseas acquisitions by Chinese and Hong Kong enterprises jumped from $1.6 billion in the first quarter of 2009 to $11.2 billion. In the energy, minerals and the public utilities sectors, there were a total of nine transactions valued at $6.4 billion.