A total of 4,763 deals* were announced globally during May 2022, according to GlobalData, which represents a decline of 9.5% over the 5,261 deals announced in April. The leading data and analytics company’s Financial Deals Database reveals that deal volume during May was also lower than the monthly average (6,159 deals) of Q1 2022.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Now the second consecutive month-on-month decline, this fall can be attributed to subdued deal activity in several key markets across all regions. Further, factors ranging from the Russia-Ukraine conflict to new COVID-19 outbreaks have made a dent in deal-making sentiments.”

The North America region witnessed a 12.8% decline in deal activity in May, compared to the previous month. However, despite the decrease, the region continued to account for the highest share of deal volume, followed by Europe, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, the Middle East and Africa (MENA), and South and Central America. Like North America, most of these regions witnessed a decline in deal activity, with Europe seeing a 3.5% decline, the APAC region seeing 12.7%, and South and Central America declining by 3.8% in May. Meanwhile, the Middle East and Africa was the only region to witness growth, at 1.6%.

Looking at a country level, deal activity declined in several key global markets in May, compared to the previous month. For example, the US declined by 13.1%, the UK by 10.8%, China by 14.8%, Canada by 8.9%, Japan by 42.7% and South Korea by 2.3%. Meanwhile, India, Germany, Australia and Spain managed to register improvement in deal activity, by 3.2%, 9.2%, 15.2% and 9.1%, respectively.

All of the deal types tracked by GlobalData witnessed a decline in deal volume in May 2022, compared to the previous month with the number of private equity, venture financing, and M&A deals decreasing by 3%, 18.1%, and 2.3%, respectively.

Snigdha Parida, Thematic Analyst at GlobalData comments: “The current environment isn’t prime for deal making. This can be viewed as a return to more ‘normal’ levels, as the COVID-19-driven boost last year has largely dissipated, and the broader economic outlook has become less conducive to deal making. Looking at the current mix of macro-economic conditions, geopolitical uncertainty, supply chain disruptions, and other factors, deal making in the coming months of 2022 will continue to face significant headwinds.”

* Comprising mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity, and venture financing deals

(Note: Historic data may change in case some deals get added to previous months because of a delay in disclosure of information in the public domain)