Acquisition Completion or Abandonment: The Effect of Revealed Comparative Advantage in the M&A Pre-integration Process

Abstract

This paper explores the effect of revealed comparative advantage in the M&A pre-integration process. Revealed comparative advantage reflects the advantage of a particular industry in trade compared to other industries. It is measured by the share of a sector’s exports in the overall country-wide exports, compared to the share of that sector’s exports in the total exports of a group of countries. In this study, we examine whether revealed comparative advantage could determine the completion likelihood of an M&A deal and the duration of M&A pre-integration process. A binary logistic regression model and a multiple regression model were performed with a sample of 260 mergers and acquisitions to test for the possible relationships. The evidence demonstrates that revealed comparative advantage of targets can reduce the likelihood of consummating acquisition deals as well as prolong the decision-making period of M&A announcements. Additionally, revealed comparative advantage of acquirers’ industries can help to reduce the length of the pre-integration phase.

Keywords: acquisition completion, acquisition abandonment, acquisition duration, revealed comparative advantage.