Report: Logistics M&A activity rising, more deals to come

Report: Logistics M&A activity rising, more deals to come The disclosed value of mergers and acquisition deals in the global transport and logistics industry during 2006 rose 8.6 percent over 2005 to '36.7 billion ($73.4 billion), London-based Transport Intelligence said in a new report.
   The report, Global Logistics Strategies 2007, tracked more than 290 deals in 2006, with the largest investment being made in ports, airports and other transport infrastructure operations. Private equity backed deals amounted to '10.7 billion ($21.4 billion), one-third of the total.
   The contract logistics, freight forwarding and express sectors accounted for 8 percent of the total with the largest deals being private equity company Apollo's acquisition of CEVA (TNT Logistics) from TNT and DSV's acquisition of Frans Maas.
   “Acquisitions are being driven by the ambitious growth plans of large and small companies alike. This will ensure that M&A activity remains at a high rate for the foreseeable future,” said John Manners-Bell, Transport Intelligence’s chief analyst.
   “The recent acquisitions of Christian Salvesen by Norbert Dentressangle and Rohde & Liesenfeld by Geodis are evidence of such ambition in both companies' desire to build regional or even global operations.
   “The combination of market fragmentation and ambition will also continue to make the sector attractive for private equity companies looking for arbitrage deals ' despite an uncertain economic outlook, we expect many more deals in the near future.”