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The volume of M&A worldwide fell sharply in the 2007 second half as credit dried up for private equity deals and many chief executives scrapped plans for bold takeovers, according to Dealogic, the data provider. Global M&A in the year to date reached $4,740bn surpassing last year’s record of $3,910bn. But volume in the second half dropped 26% and September was the lowest month since November 2005. Jimmy Elliott, global head of M&A at JPMorgan, warned volumes could fall a further 20-40% next year. Although announced buy-outs reached a record $782.9bn in the year to date, volume dropped 65% to $208.5bn in the second half. However, advisory revenue from deals worldwide rose 15% from last year to reach $26.3bn. Goldman Sachs led the global and US advisory rankings in 2007, while Morgan Stanley topped the European league. UBS was the lead adviser in Asia Pacific, excluding Japan. Goldman, Morgan, JPMorgan and Citigroup together advised on deals worth $1,000bn in the year to date. In 2006, Goldman was the only bank to surpass this.