Global M&A volume tops $1 trillion -Dealogic

NEW YORK, April 17 (Reuters) - Global mergers and acquisitions surpassed $1.0 trillion on Thursday, marking a 27 percent decline from the same period last year, according to research firm Dealogic.

Deal activity this year has been overshadowed by concerns of a U.S. recession, tight credit markets and stock market weakness.

It took 107 days for merger volume to hit the $1 trillion mark in 2008, compared with 85 days in 2007 and 93 days in 2006.

Amid the credit drought, the value of deals by private equity firms and other financial sponsors dropped 65 percent from the same period a year ago, Dealogic said.

Despite the drop in total deal volume, the number of global deals stood at 11,286 -- the highest year-to-date figure on record, Dealogic said.

Consumer products has been the most-targeted industry this year for deals, followed by finance and technology, Dealogic said.

In the U.S., total deal volume dropped 28 percent to $525.1 billion, with the value of financial sponsor deals plunging 86 percent, Dealogic said.

The value of acquisitions or mergers by corporations dropped 17 percent globally, but rose 2 percent in the U.S., Dealogic said. (Reporting by Jessica Hall) (For more M&A news and our DealZone blog, go to here)