UK on downward slope

These tables show how the UK buyouts market has continued its downward trend since the second half of 2004, and how Continental Europe has pursued its upward swing to the highest ever total deal value since CMBOR started tracking European buyouts. To emphasise this trend, of the top 15 deals in the opening half of 2006, only three are British deals – SSP, Doncasters, and Orchid Pubs – and of the top 10, only one, SSP is a UK buyout.

If the stats from the last four years are anything to go by, France will soon surpass the UK as the home of European buyouts. France has experienced an increase in deal value every six months since 2003 H2, with the exception of the slight dip in the last six months of 2005.

The Nordic countries had a mixed experience. Denmark witnessed a dramatic increase in 2006 HI, although this was almost single-handedly down the TDC deal, with Finland at a record low on €10m, Norway up to an all-time high of €1.28bn and Sweden plateauing at €2.3bn.