KPMG’s latest Transport Tracker has revealed that completed mergers and acquisitions in freight and logistics rose from being worth £7 billion in 2013 to £31.4 billion in 2015, as large companies targeted smaller operations with advanced IT systems.
For example, UPS recently acquired US company Coyote Logistics in a deal worth £1.2 billion, while XPO Logistics took over French forwarding business Norbert Dentressangle for £1.8 billion.
KPMG says that the completion of a FedEx and TNT deal this year will set the basis for another significant period in transport and logistics mergers.
It predicts that this year will see total mergers and acquisitions in the wider transport sector top £52 billion in 2016, versus the £48 billion seen last year.
James Stamp, UK head of transport at KPMG, commented, "We expect investment activities in the transport and logistics sector to remain high, driven by the search for growth, changes in demographics and supply chain, evolution of business models, increased focus on customer proposition, and changes to the regulatory environment."
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Jenny Whelan. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
