The total value of merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in the construction and real estate sector globally for December was estimated at $6.98 billion, down by 44.5% when compared to the last 12-month average of $12.59 billion, according to GlobalData, the LSE-listed data analytics and consulting company.
The value marked a decrease of 60.5% over the previous month according to a report released by the analytics company.
Globally, the Asia-Pacific region topped the M&A real estate list, with $3.95 billion worth of announced deals for December. At a country level, China emerged at the top, with $2.69 billion deals. 
In terms of global volumes, Asia-Pacific was the top region for construction and real estate industry M&A deals, followed by North America and then Europe, the report added. The top country in terms of M&A deals activity was the USA, with 34 deals, followed by China with 22 and the UK with 14.
As of the end of December 2019, construction and real estate M&A deals worth $149.9 billion were announced globally, which marked a decrease of 47.1% year-on-year. The top five construction and real estate industry M&A deals accounted for 46.05% of the overall value in December 2019, the report highlighted.
Meanwhile, the combined value of the top five construction & real estate M&A deals stood at $3.22 billion, against the overall value of $6.98 billion recorded for the month.
Some of the real estate industry deals tracked by GlobalData were:
- Potter UK Bidco’s $915.68m acquisition of Hansteen
- The $688.5 million acquisition of IC Ictas Construction / Astaldi JV by Anhui Expressway, China Merchants Expressway Network Technology Holdings, China Merchants Union (BVI), Jiangsu Expressway, Sichuan Expressway and Zhejiang Expressway
- J Front Retailing’s $600.74m acquisition of Parco
- The $515.66 million acquisition of Shanghai Xinhu Real Estate Development by Greentown Real Estate Group
- Hubei Chutian Smart Communication and Hubei Transportation Investment Construction Group’s acquisition of Hubei Daguangbei Expressway for $494.7 million.
