Chinese bidders continued to drive the value of cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the second quarter of 2016, according to a report released by law firm Baker & McKenzie on Monday.
China saw 97 outbound deals in Q2 with a total worth of 40.7 billion U.S. dollars -- 23 percent and 132 percent higher than the same period in 2015, according to Baker & McKenzie's Cross-Border M&A Index report for Q2 2016.
The Chinese investment was primarily in technology and industrials, accounting for 17 billion U.S. dollars and 4.8 billion U.S. dollars respectively, the report said.
"I suspect that Chinese outbound M&A will be a driving factor for M&A in the year ahead and be a key part of global transactional activity," said Michael DeFranco, chair of Baker & McKenzie's Global M&A Practice.
Globally, Brexit and political uncertainty in the United States are among the factors dampening deal makers' confidence. The total value of cross-border megadeals -- those above 5 billion U.S. dollars in value -- fell significantly in the first half of the year, the report showed.
