Global upstream mergers and acquisitions (M&A) fell to US$104 billion from an annual average of nearly $160 billion in 2005-2007, according to the 2009 Global Upstream M&A Review prepared by IHS Herold and Lovergrove & Company – a Standard Chartered group company.
The review provides a comprehensive analysis of more than 280 significant upstream transactions that were announced in 2008.
“The market declined precipitously to just 79 in the final five months of the year due to plunging commodity prices and the extreme weakness in equity and credit markets,” said Chris Sheehan, director of M&A Research for IHS Herold. “High stock prices, driven by soaring commodity prices in the first half of the year, made corporate takeovers very expensive,” he added.
