M&A activity further to run thanks to low interest rates

The consensus among UK fund managers is to expect 2006 to be very similar to 2005. Continued merger and acquisition activity, the importance of stock picking, strong overall corporate profitability and a difficult outlook for consumer-facing businesses are themes of note. Hector Fitzpatrick, manager of Scottish Value Management's UK Alpha Fund, sees potential M&A activity as an underpin to the market. He says, "This activity is broadening out from the private equity industry to deals between quoted companies. Where there is industrial logic and scope for value creation, investors seem...