The first quarter of 2009 was a quiet period for mergers and acquisitions in China, which fell to their lowest point in two years. During the quarter 1,427 deals were announced, down from 1,812 in the same period in 2008. The worst, however, is over, according to transaction partner Matthew Phillips from PricewaterhouseCoopers PwC Shanghai office, who foresees a recovery in China-related MA transactions starting from the second half of 2009.
Deals in the first quarter of 2009 dropped both because the number of domestic-to-domestic deals in China came down and because foreign corporate buyers reduced their exposure to China so inbound transactions fell as well. The good news is that things...