WEST
MIDL
ANDS
CO
MP
AN
YG
UIDE9
Tr
an
sa
ct
io
ns
re
ma
in
st
ro
ng
in
di
ffic
ul
t
de
al
se
tti
ng
Th
e64257
nancial
and
economic
climat
eh
as
led
to
ad
ro
pi
nt
he
number
of
transac
tions
being
complet
ed
in
the
UK
.B
ut,
as
Ne
il
Mer
edith,p
ar
tner
within
KP
MG
Co
rp
orat
eF
inance
in
Bir
mingham
explains
,d
espit
e
mar
ke
tc
onditions
,t
ransac
tions
ar
es
till
being
complet
ed
in
our
local
mar
ke
t-
place
Ther
ei
sn
od
oubt
that
the
global
deal
envir
onment
has
changed.
The
cr
edit
crunch
that
followed
the
sub-prime
mortgage
crisis
in
the
US
has
had
an
impact
upon
the
availability
of
debt
to
fund
transactions.
This,
compounded
by
uncertainty
in
the
economy
,h
as
led
to
ar
eduction
int
he
volume
of
transact
ions
partic
ularly
those
with
av
alue
of
mor
et
han
163100
mill
ion.
Howeve
r,
while
deal
numbers
ar
ed
own,
ther
ei
s
no
doubt
that
her
ei
nt
he
We
st
Midla
nds,
deals
ar
e
still
being
comple
ted.
Ther
ea
re
an
umber
of
factor
sd
riving
this.
Firstly
,p
rivate
equity
fundra
ising
has
continu
ed
apace
and
ther
ei
sas
ignifican
tv
olume
of
money
available
for
investment.
Recent
private
equity
transactions
such
as
the
buyout
of
Bullock
Construction
and
Dimensions
Corporatewear
by
LDC
and
Gr
esham
re
specti
vely
,
ar
ee
vidence
of
this.
Ther
ea
re
still
plenty
of
private
equity
investor
s
keen
to
back
quality
businesses
with
good
gr
owth
pr
ospects.
Secondl
y,
the
emerging
markets
ar
ep
laying
a
crucial
ro
le
in
local
investm
ent.
Wi
th
str
ong
levels
of
domestic
gr
owth
continuing
in
the
Bric
nations
8212B
razil,
Russ
ia,
India
and
China
8212t
hese
businesses
have
substantial
funds
to
invest
in
UK
firms.
Key
target
sf
or
these
organisations
ar
et
hose
with
pr
emium
brands
and/or
intell
ectual
pr
operty
8211s
omething
which
we
have
alr
eady
seen
her
e
in
the
Midlands
with
the
completion
of
the
Ta
ta
acquisition
of
Jaguar/Land
Rover
.
We
expect
this
tr
end
to
continu
ea
so
verseas
buyers
see
attractive
acquisitive
opportunities
in
a
challenging
UK
market.
Additionally
,n
ot
all
sectors
have
been
affected
by
the
curr
ent
economic
conditions.
Oil
and
gas,
waste
and
the
utilities
sectors
ar
ea
ll
performin
gw
ell
in
the
curr
ent
climate.
Gr
owing
global
demand
for
finite
natural
re
sour
ces
is
for
cing
the
value
of
commodi
ties
upwards
and
this
is
drivi
ng
investme
nt
to
incr
ease
pr
oductio
na
nd
pr
ocessing
capaci
ty
.
The
envir
onmental
impact
of
undertaki
ng
this
activi
ty
,c
oupled
with
incr
easingly
punitive
tax
legislation
on
both
mineral
extraction
and
waste
generation,
is
driving
significant
activity
acr
oss
the
waste
sector
.
This
is
particularly
the
case
in
re
cycling
wher
e
extracting
re
usable
materi
als
fr
om
the
waste
str
eam,
such
as
plastic
s,
paper
and
metals,
to
help
fulfil
global
demand
for
commodi
ties
is
partic
ularly
attrac
tive
to
investor
s.
Af
urther
factor
driving
transact
ion
activi
ty
is
the
fact
that
other
,o
ften
personal
issues,
dictate
the
timing
of
ab
usiness
sale.
This
is
partic
ularly
re
levant
for
private
compan
yo
wners
who
may
have
their
personal
wealth
tied
up
in
their
business.
For
exampl
e,
an
owner
-manage
rm
ay
be
looking
to
re
tir
ea
nd
ther
efor
ee
conomic
condition
sm
ay
have
as
hort-te
rm
impact
on
the
decisi
on
to
sell,
but
may
be
less
irr
eleva
nt
to
the
overal
lt
iming.
Chan
ges
in
legislation
can
also
have
an
effect.
Recently
,w
es
aw
an
incr
ease
in
transaction
activity
up
to
April
5,
2008,
as
ar
esult
of
the
changes
to
capital
gains
tax,
with
shar
eholders
looking
to
benefit
fr
om
the
10
per
cent
taper
re
lief
rules
befor
et
he
CGT
rate
changed
to
18
per
cent.
The
genera
lv
iew
is
that
these
transa
ctions
had
been
accelerated
to
take
advan
tageo
ft
he
lower
effec
tive
tax
rate
rather
than
being
driven
by
the
tax
change.
It
is
also
fair
to
say
that
the
curr
ent
economi
c
envir
onment
pr
ovides
opportunit
ies
to
buy
businesses
at
attrac
tive
price
sa
nd
then
re
alise
gains
on
exit
when
the
market
re
covers.
Opportu
nities
arise
in
sectors
which
ar
et
rading
at
ad
iscoun
tt
ot
he
wider
market.
Should
as
ector
curr
ently
be
trading
at
a
discoun
tt
hen
we
belie
ve,
fr
om
our
re
cent
re
sear
ch,
that
the
sector
offer
sr
eal
value
to
potentia
l
acquir
ers.
These
sectors
include
general
re
tail,
household
goods
and
textiles
as
well
as
automotive
and
parts.
So
despite
the
pr
evailing
doom
and
gloom,
ther
e
ar
em
any
re
asons
to
be
optimistic.
The
Midlands
market-place
has
performed
well
in
pr
evious
downturns
and
the
quality
of
our
corporate
base
and
pr
ofessional
advisers
will
stand
us
in
good
stead.
Additionally
,o
ur
middle
-market
focus
will
pr
otect
us
fr
om
many
of
the
factor
sa
ffecting
the
mega
deals
which
ar
eh
itting
the
City
so
sever
ely
.
In
summa
ry
ther
efor
e,
while
conditio
ns
will
re
main
difficult
for
the
for
eseeable
futur
ew
e
belie
ve
that
ther
ew
ill
continu
et
ob
eah
ealthy
deal
flow
in
our
re
gion.
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31Page 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40 Produced by PageSuite