HORIZONS | BDO'S GLOBAL VIEWOF MID-MARKET DEAL ACTIVITY 63
FOCUS ONOPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
UK deals in 2021 were tech-related – and sparking interest from investors, three fifths of respondents to our survey cited an expectation to make greater use of, or invest in, technology to boost efficiency or service offering. As we move into 2022, we are anticipating a continued high level of deal activity. Logistics businesses are thinking to the future. There is increased focus on ESG issues, solutions to widen the scope of recruitment and training, opportunities for more adjacent local and global service offerings, and of course the potential deployment of technology. The abundance of available funds is well documented and will continue to drive M&A activity in the wider market. In the logistics industry in particular, inflationary pressures on resource and supplies remain high, but challenge breeds opportunity, and there
continues to be a rebalancing of the sector with recognition of its worth that is coming through across many areas in higher customer pricing, all adding to the increasing investor interest. *Barclays and BDO, in conjunction with specialist sector research agency Analytiqa, conducted the latest in a series of surveys to assess confidence and expectations in the UK logistics sector. The survey incorporated views from more than 100 senior decision makers, including chief executive officers, managing directors and chief financial officers, and was conducted during July and August 2021. Their responses have been compiled to create the UK Logistics Confidence Index 2021.
More generally, recent global supply chain disruption has led to more business focus on operational supply chain requirements, and considerations such as whether to concentrate on core activities, or of re- shoring operations. In addition, and despite the extremely competitive nature of the marketplace, strong inflationary pressures are starting to have an impact across the market, with increased prices anticipated across the global supply chain, particularly reflecting increased energy, labour and global freight costs. These factors have boosted interest and appetite to invest in the use of technology to inform and improve supply chain strategies and maximise returns on time and resource. As well as being an important factor driving deal-making – a quarter of
Read the full report here. For our UK Logistics quarterly deals updates read here.
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