The next big M&A story

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS bankers, desperate for deals, see a bright beacon of hope in China. As the country attempts to transform its bloated, largely state-owned economy into a globally competitive powerhouse its thirst for foreign capital, technology and management skills is growing ever greater. And with multinational corporations looking for ways to break into a market that promises breathtaking growth rates they are ever more willing to provide all three.

And it's not just international investors snatching up Chinese entities that will keep M&A bankers occupied. Deal hunters are also greedily eyeing the new breed of recently listed cash-rich and confident Chinese companies looking abroad for possible acquisition targets. These corporates understand that if they are to become world competitors expansion outside the People's Republic is obligatory....