A scent of a merger

THE ALCHEMIST

Gordon Gekko, Wall Street, Bonfire of the Vanities, Barbarians at the Gate. Excuse me, but did the Nineties and Noughties never happen?

Entering Q4 2010 has a disturbingly similar feel to the brick-phoned, red-braces-and-Moet days of the Eighties. Strikes, spending cuts and rising taxes, plus the prospect of a double dip leaves a sour taste, but the decidedly sweet aroma of mergers and acquisitions is back. In almost any region or sector, hiring in M&A is strong. Having exhausted the efficiency possibilities of cutbacks, firms are under increasing pressure to produce growth, profits and dividends. One of the fallacies about the lingering crisis is that investors are short of cash. They are not. Some are finding it har...