How have merger and acquisition activities in the paint and coatings industry developed recently? 2021 was a very strong year in M&A activity for the chemicals and coatings industries, which peaked in deal activity the back half of the year. Starting in 2022 we witnessed a softening in M&A activity that persisted into Q1 of 2023 with five straight quarters of lower deal volumes over the same quarter of the prior year. Across chemicals, deal volumes were down roughly 25 % in 2022 versus 2021 (901 reported transactions vs 1,210). Activity in paints, coatings, resins and polymers were off closer ...