September 29th, 2011 
Jonathan Dionisio 
I say everything is going great. Sadly, the market severely disagrees with me. The past few weeks have been as I’ve said before, nerve-wracking. In past months, we could still read about multi-million M&A deals here in the US. But for now, everything seems to be quiet.
It’s not quiet. The truth is mergers and acquisition activity has indeed slowed down. According to Dealogic, dollar value of deals made from July to September has dropped by more than 23 percent compared to the same period last year. From July to September 24, 9,381 deals were announced globally with a dollar value of $573.3 billion. In Q3 of 2010, 10,284 deals valued at $748.75 billion were announced worldwide.
The debt crisis in Europe and here in the US has greatly contributed to this quarter’s decline. Citing the data from Dealogic, M&A activity in Europe slipped by about 31 percent while U.S. M&A went down 13 percent. With just a few days left before the end of the month, this quarter could be the worst year-on-year quarterly decline since Q3 of 2009.
If this is the case, should you also put your acquisition plans on hold? Preferably not. Remember, the entire buying process could take a year. A year that is, if you have already chosen a business for sale. Starting with signing a Confidentiality Agreement, perusing a Confidential Business Review, executing a Letter of Intent, conducting due diligence and so on and so forth. But if your company has decided to pursue growth through acquisition, the process may take even longer.
I admit; the country’s situation seems discouraging. But the more you delay your plans, the more you put your entire business at risk by not expanding. Buying a business for sale is the best and probably the safest way to achieve this. No matter how volatile the market may be, or what analysts say about the status of the country, you still have full control of your company. Bring it to where you want it to be. The choice is all yours to make.
Where are you with your acquisition plans? Let us know by leaving a comment. For those still looking for businesses for sale, just visit Corporations4Sale.com, get registered and search our extensive database for the perfect opportunity for you.
Sources:
http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2011/09/26/worst-quarter-for-ma-since-2009/?mod=WSJBlog
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204010604576592790649429556.html
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