The global economic outlook improved in the second half of 2023, led by resilience demonstrated by the US economy, however, restrictive monetary policy, withdrawal of fiscal support, and sluggish productivity growth continue to drag the growth trajectory. With inflation going down, the path toward global economic recovery appears more plausible. M&A activities across the Asia-Pacific region declined and reported the lowest number of deals in recent years.
APAC's M&A activity remained subdued in 2023, with deal volumes declining by 21% Y-o-Y (aggregated US$707 billion) and APAC region's share of global M&A stood at 31% (lower than the Americas and EMEA). The overall growth was significantly impacted by a steep decline in deal volumes in India and Southeast Asia (both down by 51% Y-o-Y respectively), however, Japan's improved deal volumes (up by 33% Y-o-Y) emerged as a notable highlight.
Growth resilience in major economies, increased government and private spending and easing labour markets will drive global growth eclipsed by the growing concerns of geopolitical instability. The pace of global recovery will impact M&A activities across various regions including APAC, making progress to the pre-COVID levels slow and challenging.
