Finance directors and corporate treasurers are forecasting more mergers and acquisitions next year than at any time since the peak of the market in 2007.

According to a survey conducted by Thomson Reuters and Freeman Consulting Services, the 150 people polled expect deals to rise by 36% worldwide to $3.04 trillion in 2011, the highest figure since the $4.28 trillion recorded before the credit crunch and banking crisis started in 2007.