In the shadow of Latin America's subdued M&A landscape for 2023, the Real Estate & Construction sector stood out, bucking the broader trend with a robust increase i⛎n deal volume. Amid a challenging year for dealmaking, this sector, alongside Mining and Hospitals & Healthcare, was among the few to register an uptick in transaction volume in the region.

Deal activity within Real Estate & Construction in Latin Am꧑erica surged 40% froꦆm the previous year, breaking the 100-transaction threshold. The sector's aggregate value climbed by more than 31% year-over-year to nearly USD 6.0 billion, as investors sought refuge in the midst of a fragile macroeconomic climate.

Brazil was pivotal to this growth, with Real Estate & Construction deals there increasing by 54.3% year-over-year, totaling 71 transactions, and the collective deal valuation escalating by 25.3% to reach USD 3.0 billion. In stark contrast, the country’s broader M&A market, which is Latin America's la☂rgest, saw an 18% decrease in the number of deals to 1,010, while the aggregate value of these deals tu🍨mbled by more than 40% to USD 32.8 million.

Brazil also hosted the sector's largest transaction: Hapvida's USD 909 million sale and leaseback deal for 10 properties. Other key deals included the USD 693 million purchase of Advance Desarrollo in Mexico 🎃by Walton Street Capital and Credit Suisse's USD 290.5 million investment in a Brazilian logistics property portfolio.

The Mining sector, too, registered a 32.7% increase in deal count to 73, with activity spiking in Chile and Mexico. Despite this, the total value of deals in the sector shrank by 46% to USD 4.4 billion, highlighted by Lundin Mining's USD 950 million acquisition of the Caserones copper-molybdenum 🍌mine in Chile.

In terms of value🐼 increase, the Hospitals & Healthcare sector saw the most significant jump, with total value of regional transactions skyrocketing by 233% to USD 3.4 billion. This was largely due to Junior Seripieri Filho's USD 2.3 billion acquisition of United Health's Amil, marking a historic investment by a private investor in Brazil's M&A 🅠history.

Yet, even with these bright spots, the leading sectors, including IT & Internet, Finance & Insurance, and Services, fac🐲ed a significant decline. A combination of rising political instability and a dismal economic outlook led to an 18.1% year-over-year decrease in M&A deals across Latin America, with the total number of transactions in 2023 falling to 1,670 and their overall value dropping by 34.4% to USD 61 billion.

EMIS alongside leading global law firm CMS, are pleased to have launched the Emerging Europe M&A 2023/24 Report, exploring the trends and data within the region, on both a country and sector basis. .

 

Original source: EMIS M&A Dealwatch