Japanese companies may set a record for foreign takeovers and investment next year as they scramble to boost shareholder value after a 48 percent plunge in the nation's stocks this year, said JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s new head of mergers and acquisitions in Japan.
Banks, insurers and consumer-goods makers, including pharmaceutical, food and beverage companies, will continue expansion abroad, said Masaru Shibata.
M&A activity in Japan will intensify further, Shibata, 43, said. The recent share plunge is creating a sense of anxiety and an incentive for companies to sell noncore assets and strengthen business abroad.
Overseas buyouts by Japanese firms total a record $75 billion so far this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Declining stock prices and a strengthening yen are making acquisitions abroad more affordable to the companies, while Japan's first recession since 2001 is cutting earnings at home.
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