M&A market sets sights on second best historical performance! Single-day trading volume exceeds 800 billion US dollars, aiming to reach 4 trillion US dollars for the whole year.

The global mergers and acquisitions market is heading towards the second best performance in history. It is noted that on Monday, the U.S. announced four large mergers and acquisitions with a total value of over $80 billion in a single day. Leading this wave of transactions is Kimberly, which has agreed to acquire struggling Tennovium manufacturer Kenvey for approximately $40 billion. Kimberly stated that this merger will surpass Unilever, making it the world's second largest health and wellness products seller after only Procter & Gamble. The other three transactions cover the energy, industrial, and mining sectors, with data showing that the number of transactions in the U.S. valued at over $10 billion has reached 57 this year, the highest level since records began in 1970. As investment bankers have recovered from the turmoil earlier in 2025, unprecedented mega mergers (valued at $30 billion or more) are also expected to follow. On Tuesday, the long-standing stalemate over the stake sale of Starbucks China also ended, with Starbucks selling a majority stake in its Chinese business for a corporate value of $40 billion to private equity firm Beryl Capital, setting the stage for a resurgence in growth in China. It is worth mentioning that with two months left in the year, global transaction volume has reached $3.8 trillion. This is about 38% higher than the same period in 2024. The boom in artificial intelligence has become one of the themes of this merger revival. Eaton, for example, has just agreed to acquire liquid cooling specialist Boyd Thermal Systems for $9.5 billion to take advantage of the huge demand from AI data centers. Trade matchmakers are expected to have a strong year ahead. Additionally, there are signs that activity in the U.S. energy sector is rebounding, which has been suppressed this year by global trade tensions and falling oil prices. Exploration company SM Energy and Civitas Resources reached an all-stock deal, with the combined entity valued at $12.8 billion including debt; BP announced it will sell its stake in U.S. shale assets to Sixth Street for $1.5 billion to improve its balance sheet. In the Asia-Pacific region, Eni and Malaysia's national oil company have reached a binding agreement to merge their upstream assets in Indonesia and Malaysia. They plan to invest over $15 billion in gas projects in these countries over the next five years. Also on October 28, Newmont Mining announced a $7 billion acquisition of New Gold in a deal aimed at consolidating the two mid-tier gold producers in North America, reflecting rising investor interest in the industry. It is certain that the number of transactions announced in 2025 has yet to show signs of improvement, indicating that obstacles related to trade and geopolitics still exist, heightening competition among transaction advisers. Goldman Sachs leads Wall Street, clinching over $1 trillion in deals. According to the latest data, Goldman Sachs continues to solidify its position as a global leader in merger advisory, with deals totaling over $1 trillion so far this year. Industry insiders expect this number to continue climbing and may set a new historical high for the bank's annual deal volume. Speaking at the Hong Kong International Financial Leaders Investment Summit, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon stated that the current global merger market environment is "extremely favorable" for business development in 2026 and 2027, especially in the U.S. market. The Wall Street giant's leader pointed out that the bank has observed "a large number of significant integration opportunities brewing." "Corporate decision-makers are actively seeking to enhance their core competitiveness through diversified strategies and drive business expansion," Solomon said in an interview during the summit. Solomon also mentioned that as market valuations become more attractive, international capital's interest in the Chinese market has significantly increased compared to 12 months ago, although investors remain cautious. It is worth noting that Goldman Sachs' third-quarter earnings report released in early October showed record revenue for the period as a result of growth in merger advisory income. At the same time, the bank notified its 48,300 employees globally that it will continue to advance its job optimization plan this year as operational efficiency increases with artificial intelligence technology.