Lumpy M&A deals unlikely to boost 2014 activity in Middle East | The National

Lumpy M&A deals unlikely to boost 2014 activity in Middle East | The National:

"A large increase in targeted mergers and acquisitions in the first nine months of 2013 does not herald a sustained increase of Middle Eastern deals in 2014 and beyond, according to Mergermarket.

Africa and Middle East-targeted mergers and acquisitions announced in the first nine months reached US$51.6 billion, matching the annual total for 2012, according to Mergermarket’s Q1-Q3 2013 M&A Round-Up, published last week. This year is forecast to be the first since 2007 in which there was M&A activity worth more than $10bn each quarter, according to the report.

However, the rise in regional M&A activity is largely attributed to just three large deals, namely the merger of Aldar Properties and Sorouh Real Estate, the merger of Dubai Aluminium (Dubal) and Emirates Aluminium (Emal), and Etisalat’s potential acquisition of a 53 per cent stake in Maroc Telecom from Vivendi Telecom."

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