FactSet Mergerstat Release: Global M&A Wrap Up for 2005.

LOS ANGELES -- There's no business like the M&A business. That's a song dealmakers the world over should be singing at the close of 2005.

Globally, the total number of announced mergers and acquisitions and the amount invested in M&A deals hit a high note last year,

Announced aggregate M&A deal volume rose to 29,585 from 28,302 in 2004, while aggregate M&A deal value soared to US$2 trillion for the same period from US$1.5 trillion in 2004. Average deal size increased to US$157 million from US$128 million in 2004.

In the US, aggregate deal volume stood at 10,511 deal announcements, just inching past 2004's total of 10,456.(2) But aggregate US deal value for 2005 rocketed to US$1 trillion versus US$781 billion in 2004. Average deal size grew to US$259 million from US$200 million in 2004.

In Europe, aggregate deal volume clocked in at 12,029, blowing past the 11,329 deal announcements made in 2004. Aggregate deal value jumped to US$883 billion, compared to US$646 billion in 2004. Average deal size ratcheted up to US$211 million from US$167 million in 2004.

In the Asia-Pacific, aggregate deal volume also surged to 8,852 from 8,272 in 2004. Aggregate deal volume rose to US$294 billion from US$268 billion in 2004. Average deal size moved up to US$59 million from US$57 million in 2004.

In the Middle East and Africa, aggregate deal value expanded to 758 from 680 in 2004. Aggregate deal value popped up to US$74 billion from US$31 billion in 2004 and average deal size ballooned to US$195 million from US$94 million.

In Latin America, M&A results were mixed. Aggregate deal value climbed to 1,244 from 1,080 in 2004, but aggregate deal value decreased slightly to US$55 billion from US$61 billion and the average deal size dropped to US$86 million from US$136 million.

Top Industries for US, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific

Globally, the Computer Software Supplies & Services industry was the most popular area for M&A deal activity. The total number of announced M&A deals in the industry climbed to 3,302 in 2005 compared to 3,088 in 2004.

Other top global industries this year for M&A were Miscellaneous Services, which posted 2,978 deal announcements (versus 2,679 in 2004); Brokerage, Investment & Management Consulting, which reported 1,935 deal announcements (versus 1,826 in 2004); Wholesale & Distribution, which recorded 1,452 deal announcements (versus 1,393 in 2004); and Leisure & Entertainment, which notched 1,452 deal announcements (versus 1,403 in 2004).

In the US, the top five industries were Computer Software, Supplies & Services with 1,677 deal announcements (versus 1,635 in 2004); Miscellaneous Services with 1,103 deal announcements (versus 1,098 in 2004); Broadcasting with 625 deal announcements (versus 533 in 2004); Brokerage, Investment & Management Consulting with 527 deal announcements (versus 523 in 2004); and Leisure & Entertainment with 491 deal announcements (versus 548 in 2004).

In Europe, the five most sought out industries for M&A were Miscellaneous Services with 1,297 deal announcements (versus 1,189 in 2004); Computer Software, Supplies & Services with 1,174 deal announcements (versus 1,037 in 2004); Wholesale & Distribution with 611 deal announcements (versus 528 in 2004); Construction Contractors & Engineering Services with 578 deal announcements (versus 544 in 2004); and Leisure & Entertainment with 577 deal announcements (versus 534 in 2004).

In the Asia-Pacific, the most active industries were Brokerage, Investment & Management Consulting with 975 deal announcements (versus 843 in 2004); Computer Software, Supplies & Services with 754 deal announcements (versus 716 in 2004); Miscellaneous Services with 746 deal announcements (versus 550 in 2004); Wholesale & Distribution with 478 deal announcements (versus 513 in 2004); and Real Estate with 440 deal announcements (versus 465 in 2004).

Top M&A Deals for US, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific

The largest announced deal in the US in 2005 was Procter & Gamble Co's acquisition of Gillette Co for US$57.9 billion in stock. ConocoPhillips's deal to acquire Burlington Resources Inc for approximately US$34.8 billion in cash and stock placed second, followed by Bank of America Corp's agreement to acquire MBNA Corp for US$34.4 billion in cash and stock; Boston Scientific Corp's proposed deal to acquire Guidant Corp for approximately US$23.9 billion in cash and stock; and ChevronTexaco Corp's acquisition of Unocal Corp for US$17.7 billion in cash and stock.

In Europe, the top spot on the biggest announced deals list in 2005 was claimed by Telefonica SA's friendly tender offer to acquire O2 Plc for EUR26.2 billion (US$31 billion) in cash. Gas Natural SDG SA's unsolicited takeover bid of ENDESA SA for about EUR22.6 billion (US$27.5 billion) in cash and stock came in second, followed by UniCredito Italiano SpA's acquisition of a 93.93% majority stake in Bayerische Hypo-und-Vereinsbank AG (HVB) for about EUR15.2 billion (US$18 billion) in stock; Pernod Ricard SA's acquisition of Allied Domecq PLC for EUR12.3 billion (US$14.5 billion) in cash and stock; and SUEZ SA's friendly tender offer for the remaining 49.9% stake in Electrabel SA that it does not hold for EUR11.6 billion (US$13.7 billion) in cash and stock.

In the Asia-Pacific, the biggest blockbuster announcement in 2005 was an unsolicited offer made by National Share Purchasing Corp Pty Ltd, an investment vehicle led by David Tweed, to acquire Insurance Australia Group Ltd for AUD12.9 billion (US$9.6 billion). In second place was BHP Billiton Ltd's acquisition of WMC Resources Ltd for approximately AUD$9.2 billion (US$7.3 billion) in cash, followed by Macquarie Infrastructure Group's and Eiffage SA's preliminary bid to acquire the 70% stake in Autoroutes Paris-Rhin-Rhone SA held by the Government of France for EUR4.84 billion (US$5.7 billion) in cash; IPIC - International Petroleum Investment Co's memorandum of understanding to acquire a 20.0% minority stake in Chinese Petroleum Corp for approximately TWD 165.9 billion (US$ 5.0 billion); and Goldman Sachs Group Inc's open offer to acquire a 71.51% majority stake of Seibu Railway Co Ltd from Kokudo Corp and its subsidiary, Prince Hotels Inc, for approximately JPY479 billion (US$4.6 billion) in cash.

(1) The data in this release was complete as of January 3, 2006.

(2) Note: The individual world regional numbers in this report take into account cross-border transactions with buyers or sellers of the specified region. The reader should be aware that if these world regional numbers are added up to a global total, they will exceed the global totals provided in the report because of the effect of double-counting in some cases among cross-border deals among world regions. The global numbers provided in this report take that effect into account and eliminate double-counting of cross-border deals for the global total.

To get charts and tables on top financial and legal advisors or other M&A statistics for the year-end 2005, visit the FactSet Mergerstat website at www.mergerstat.com. Complete coverage of M&A statistics can be found in FactSet Mergerstat's M&A publications, Flashwire Weekly and Flashwire Monthly and on FactSet Mergerstat's Flashwire website.

For in-depth deal data reports on global M&A markets, contact FactSet Mergerstat at 1-800-455-8871. FactSet Mergerstat, LLC tracks global mergers and acquisitions involving business entities excluding the exchange of business assets, private placements, spin-offs, and open-market transactions.