In a year marked by economic uncertainty and shifting market dynamics, global deal activity has experienced a decline during January-October 2025 compared to the same period in the previous year. The total number of deals (comprising mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity and venture financing deals) announced globally decreased by 6% year-on-year (YoY) during January-October 2025, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database revealed a downward trajectory across all the deal types under coverage. M&A deals volume saw a decline of 4% during January-October 2025 compared to January-October 2024. Meanwhile, the number of venture financing deals and private equity deals fell by 6% and 16% YoY during the same period, respectively.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The contraction in total volume of deals across all categories indicates a broader trend of cautiousness prevailing among dealmakers in a challenging market environment. This cautious sentiment is also echoed in all the regions and across most of the key markets, underscoring a growing wariness driven by macroeconomic factors and geopolitical tensions.”

North America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and South and Central America reported YoY declines of 3%, 4%, 9%, 11% and 10% in deal volume, respectively during January-October 2025.

A closer examination of select key markets reveals that the US, which is the top market in the global deal landscape, saw a modest decrease of 2%, while the UK faced a more pronounced decline of 12%. China also saw its deal volume declining by 1% YoY. Other key markets such as Canada, Germany, Australia, France, South Korea, Brazil and the UAE also experienced declines.

In contrast, India and Japan emerged as bright spots, with growth rates of 4%, suggesting that these markets may be more resilient in the face of global challenges. These figures highlight the uneven trend across different regions, with some markets struggling to maintain momentum amid global uncertainties.

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