Wall Street giddy as Trump White House expected to OK fresh wave of mergers and acquisitions

Wall Street is salivating as President-elect Donald Trump is expected to usher in a new era of increased dealmaking during his second term — including a stepped-up pace of mergers and acquisitions.The second White House win by Trump, who campaigned on a pledge to loosen the reins of the regulatory state, has sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average to record highs this week, powered by stocks in banking, energy and cryptocurrency.But a loosening of antitrust enforcement could meanwhile boost stocks of US companies across the board.In a Wednesday note to clients, Goldman Sachs predicted a 20% increase in M&A activity next year.

The investment banking giant said that M&A activity fell this year 15% compared to 2023.“The regulatory posture of the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division that during the past four years challenged many proposed business combinations will likely be more relaxed under the incoming administration,” Goldman Sachs chief US equity strategist David Kostin wrote.Warner Bros.Discovery CEO David Zaslav, whose cable news network CNN has long had an adversarial relationship with Trump, expressed optimism that his incoming administration would be a “real positive” for business consolidation.“We have an upcoming new administration,” Zaslav told analysts on an earnings call on Thursday.“It’s too early to tell, but it may offer a pace of change and an opportunity for consolidation that may be quite different, that would provide a real positive and accelerated impact on this industry that’s needed.”In July, Zaslav expressed hope that the next administration would allow for more mergers.“We just need an opportunity for deregulation, so companies can consolidate and do what we need to, to be even better,” Zaslav said at the time.The Biden administration has frustrated business leaders over its aggressive antitrust stance spearheaded by Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, Securities and...