Friday Letter Hitting the wall

One of the least surprising news stories to emerge this week was a report (from law firm RW Baird) suggesting that European M&A activity slumped to its lowest level for almost three years in April: August 2009 was the last month when there was such a dearth of deals. Inevitably, the report pinned the blame on the ongoing chaos in the eurozone, suggesting that the recent elections in Greece and France had "heightened uncertainties".