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JP Morgan sees robust M&A deals amid toll wars
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JP Morgan sees robust M&A deals amid toll wars

Despite trade wars and regulatory complexities, there was a “resilient” flow of merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in the first half of 2025, with Asia Pacific outperforming other regions of the world, global banking giant JP Morgan said.

For the remainder of this year, JP Morgan expects such a robust dealmaking pipeline to continue across various regions and sectors. Technology, diversified industries, energy, consumer and retail businesses are among the potential beneficiaries.

According to JP Morgan’s Global M&A Midyear Outlook, global M&A volumes reached $2.2 trillion in the first semester, up 27 percent. This was driven by a 57-percent increase in so-called “mega” deals, or those valued at more than $10 billion.

However, momentum was also observed in smaller-ticket deals ranging between $2 billion and $10 billion.

Deal volumes rose across multiple sectors, with several experiencing double-digit year-over-year growth: financial institutions at 56 percent; media and communications at 51 percent; technology at 42 percent; diversified industries at 41 percent; consumer and retailing at 32 percent; and power and renewables at 14 percent.

On the other hand, M&A deals involving health care and energy slowed down.

This year, the Top 3 target countries for M&A deals are the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. On the other hand, the top acquirer countries are the US, Japan and the United Arab Emirates.

Emerging deal types related to tariff-driven expansion, sector consolidation, technology-enabled growth and new cross-border strategic alliances are shaping the evolving global M&A landscape, according to the report.

Just in Asia Pacific, M&A volumes surged 92 percent to $719 billion. Of these, Greater China accounted for the lion’s share of 44 percent.

“We are primed for significant activity in Japan, Australia, Korea and India. Sponsors have a pipeline of exits lined up across the region,” said Rohit Chatterji, head of JP Morgan Asia Pacific M&A.

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Chatterji said activism would catalyze take-privates or portfolio reviews in Japan and Korea.

On the other hand, he said domestic consolidation would still have some way to go in Australia and Southeast Asia.

Amidst the complex backdrop, JP Morgan said key factors continued to create a favorable environment for dealmaking:

  • Market conditions are improving, alongside consumer sentiment and optimism about economic recovery.
  • Strategic acquisitions have become an adaptive necessity for companies seeking scale, enhanced capabilities and market expansion.
  • Private equity investments are increasing as financial sponsors with significant capital pools face pressure to deploy and monetize.
  • Rapid growth and transformation in sectors like technology and infrastructure are driving large-scale M&A efforts to achieve supply chain resilience.

“M&A and capital markets have been remarkably resilient in the face of significant macroeconomic, geopolitical and policy volatility,” said Anu Aiyengar, JP Morgan global head of advisory and M&A. “Consistent, profitable growth at scale has been rewarded with premium valuations driving companies to continue to pursue M&A.”

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