A January 13, 2015 article in Forbes makes a positive case for 2015 M&A: “So far, it seems that 2014′s dynamic merger & acquisition market is galloping right into 2015… the question is whether the market conditions that fueled 2014′s activity continue to push middle market M&A in 2015…

Thompson Reuters… determined that last year was the strongest year for dealmaking since before the recession with a 47% increase in the total value of worldwide M&A over 2013. Also, according to Bloomberg’s Global M&A Market Review, North American deals increased by almost 55% in overall value compared to 2013. The leading sectors for last year were telecommunications and media, pharmaceuticals and healthcare, and energy.

The drivers behind 2014′s M&A activity were the abundance of cash available to be deployed and the cheap financing available. Additionally… slow corporate earnings growth downstream of the recession forced corporate giants to seek growth externally rather than focus on organic increases in revenue. For the middle market, these conditions are still in place…”