To help understand the factors influencing performance, we interviewed 100 senior executives in industrial products and services (including automotive manufacturers and makers of other large durable products like airplanes and construction equipment) from a range of geographies about their experiences in creating value through M&A. All participants in this survey had made at least one significant acquisition and one significant divestment in the past 36 months. The survey included a combination of qualitative and quantitative questions and all interviews were conducted by telephone. All responses, where not attributed to our clients, are anonymised and presented in aggregate. This report draws on the insights gleaned from the study and the interviews, and on our own experience helping clients navigate the deals landscape. It offers a roadmap for how leaders should approach value creation within their organisations to deliver the full return potential on the transaction.

China’s total logistics expense reached Rmb13.3 trillion in 2018, making it the world’s largest logistics market. As the flow between the point of production and the point of consumption, logistics plays a tremendous role in China’s economic development. In light of rising e commerce, new retail and advanced manufacturing sectors, along with the participation of new technology, new ideas and new capital, the traditional business model of low efficiency and sloppy management has undergone a huge transformation. Subsectors such as express & freight, warehousing & storage and intelligent informatisation have also evolved and experienced rapid integration. Between 2016 and H1/19 , there were 329 M&As related to China, with deal value totaling Rmb465.2 billion. In the current environment of consumption industrial upgrading, the logistics industry is seeking to lower cost and improve efficiency.