Dealmakers Buckle Up as Records Give Way to Ruptures in M&A

Six months on from their busiest-ever year, dealmakers are facing the reality that a slowdown in mergers and acquisitions may be more than a temporary blip.

Global M&A values have fallen 17% year-on-year to $2.1 trillion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Rampant inflation, hawkish central banks, war in Ukraine and squeezed supply chains have combined to quickly cool the record levels of buying seen in 2021.

Banks are also starting to pull back on lending for big-ticket transactions, choking off financing for private equity firms that fueled the boom. Deals are down across all major regions and most sectors, ...