Amid the impact of heightened geopolitical uncertainties and low growth across all the major economies, the first quarter of 2025 saw an overall decline in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deal value of 13% compared to the same quarter in 2024. Supply chain resilience was the single most important theme, with $84 billion in supply chain-related transactions across 25 deals, covering sectors like healthcare and materials, reveals GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s latest Strategic Intelligence report, “Global M&A Deals in Q1 2025 – Top Themes by Sector,” reveals that mega-deals, deals with a transaction value greater than or equal to $1 billion, decreased by 11% to $453 billion, compared to $507 billion in Q1 2024.

Priya Toppo, Strategic Intelligence Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Amid rising geopolitical tensions, demographic shifts, stricter ESG regulations, persistent labor shortages, and rapid digital transformation, companies are sharpening their focus on supply chain-related M&A activity. To mitigate risks and boost operational efficiency, they are increasingly investing in resilient, localized, and technology-enabled supply chains. This was especially true in the healthcare, materials, industrials, and consumer sectors.

The biggest supply chain deal was Sycamore Partners’ acquisition of Walgreens Boots Alliance for $23.7 billion. This deal was also the biggest in the consumer sector in Q1 2025. It was followed by Borouge Group International’s acquisition of Nova Chemicals for $13.4 billion and QXO’s acquisition of Beacon Roofing Supply for $10 billion.

Toppo continues: “An ongoing trend is the dominance of North America in M&A deal activity, accounting for 2,920 deals worth $380 million during Q1 2025. However, North America, Europe, China, APAC Ex-China, and the Middle East and Africa all saw a YoY decline in deal value.”

Toppo concludes: “The M&A outlook for the rest of 2025 is cautiously optimistic. Prospects of rate cuts in certain markets and an overall improving global growth outlook could drive increased activity. However, mega-deals may continue to face challenges, particularly in the US, where antitrust scrutiny remains a key focus for regulators.”