Comment / When consolidation pressure meets a cautious outlook: M&A in 2024

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Central bank actions to combat inflation, soaring energy costs – particularly in Europe – and escalating geopolitical issues dampened global growth in 2023.

This translated into substantial headwinds across the logistics and transportation industry.

According to Transport Intelligence, global freight forwarding is forecast to have declined 5% in real terms this year, while contract logistics revenue, in both the US and Europe, remains largely stagnant.

Despite this challenging macro backdrop, strategic acquirers remained active, focusing on small and mid-sized deals to expand their ...