周三，有逾500亿美元的收购交易安排妥当，这是推动第一季度全球交易量达到创纪录的逾1.2万亿美元的最后一波并购交易。
In the latest sign of how eager boardrooms are sparking a record number of “mega-deals”, Japan’s top drugmaker Takeda revealed it was weighing a $40bn takeover of Irish rival Shire.
日本主要制药公司武田制药(Takeda)透露，正考虑斥资400亿美元收购爱尔兰对手Shire，这是表明企业董事会热切推动创纪录数量的“巨额交易”的最新迹象。
Concho Resources, a US oil and gas producer, agreed to buy rival RSP Permian for $9.5bn including debt and CME Group, the Chicago exchange, agreed to buy Nex Group in a deal that valued the UK group at nearly $3.8bn.
美国石油和天然气生产商Concho Resources同意以95亿美元收购对手RSP Permian(包括债务)，芝加哥商品交易所集团(CME Group)同意斥资38亿美元收购英国的Nex Group。
Despite a heightened level of political uncertainty, a potential US-led trade war against China and fraught Brexit negotiations, companies have embarked on an unprecedented number of big acquisitions this year. The value of $5bn-plus deals is more than triple year-ago levels, according to data provider Thomson Reuters.
尽管政治不确定性提高，美国可能牵头对中国发起贸易战，英国退欧谈判困难重重，今年企业发起了空前数量的巨额收购。根据数据提供商汤森路透(Thomson Reuters)的数据，今年以来50亿美元以上交易的价值达到去年水平的三倍多。
More than half of the $1.2tn worth of acquisitions in the first quarter — the fastest start to a year ever — have been worth in excess of $5bn.
今年第一季度宣布的1.2万亿美元收购中，超过一半交易的价值超过50亿美元。今年也是收购交易活动起步最快的一年。整体活动水平比一年前高出67%，比2007年同期水平高出大约三分之一，2007年创下了上一个收购交易活动纪录。
The overall level of activity is up more than 67 per cent from a year earlier and about a third ahead of 2007, the previous high-water mark for takeovers.
银行家和律师们告诉英国《金融时报》，企业董事会希望防范颠覆性的技术威胁并加速增长，推动了巨额交易激增(有20多笔交易的价值至少达到100亿美元)。
The surge of big transactions — with more than 20 deals worth at least $10bn — has been bolstered by a boardroom desire to head off disruptive technological threats and accelerate growth, according to bankers and lawyers who spoke to the Financial Times.
这些交易得益于全球经济增长加快和强劲的商业信心，以及美国去年通过的减税措施，减税让企业拥有更强的活力进行大手笔收购。
The deals have been spurred by quickening global growth and robust business confidence, as well as tax cuts passed in the US last year that have added to the firepower for marquee acquisitions.
“在增长恢复元气的环境中，企业感受到压力，要证明其股票市盈率是合理的，”花旗集团(Citigroup)欧洲、中东和非洲并购业务负责人艾莉森•哈丁-琼斯(Alison Harding-Jones)表示。
“In an environment where growth is back, companies feel the pressure to justify the multiples they are trading on,” said Alison Harding-Jones, Citigroup’s Europe, Middle East and Africa M&A head.
在英国、德国、西班牙和荷兰交易活动加速的带动下，欧洲的交易量比一年前水平翻了一番多。一些银行家和律师预计，剥离资产的速度将加快，为私人股本集团敞开大门。
Dealmaking in Europe has more than doubled from year-ago levels, led by accelerating activity in the UK, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. Some bankers and lawyers expect the pace of divestitures to accelerate, opening the door for private equity groups. 案例之一是凯雷(Carlyle)和荷兰涂料生产商阿克苏诺贝尔(Akzo Nobel)本周就后者的特种化学品业务达成的101亿欧元交易(包括债务)。这笔收购是近年欧洲最大的私人股本交易之一。
That was apparent in a €10.1bn deal, including debt, clinched this week between Carlyle and Dutch paint maker Akzo Nobel for the latter’s speciality chemicals business. The acquisition is one of the largest European private equity deals agreed in recent years.
世达律师事务所(Skadden Arps)并购交易负责人史蒂芬•阿尔卡诺(Stephen Arcano)表示，企业对潜在的政治风险很警惕，但目前还没有证据表明交易谈判的速度将在今年晚些时候放缓。
Stephen Arcano, head of M&A at Skadden, said that companies were being vigilant about potential political risks but for the time being there was no evidence that the pace of deal talks would slow down later in the year.
阿尔什•马苏迪(Arash Massoudi)，詹姆斯•丰塔内拉汗(James Fontanella-Khan)补充报道
Additional reporting by Arash Massoudi and James Fontanella-Khan 译者/徐行
