A surge in UK M&A activity has seen deals in the country account for almost half of the total value announced in Europe so far this year, according to a report by Mergemarket.

In the first half of 2015 the UK saw deals with a total value of $201.5bn – meaning it has already reached its highest annual total since 2008. Subsequently deals originating in the country make up 45% of the total value in the whole of Europe over the period.

Dealmaking in Europe as a whole, particularly outbound activity, has stalled in the first half of the year following a strong 2014. The cloud hanging over the freefalling Euro and the crisis in Greece saw announcements fall by 8% on the same period in 2014. The total value for the first six months stands at $449.8bn.

>See also: Volume of M&A deals down 8% in April

Deals between US and European firms also took a significant hit as regulations imposed on North American companies took hold. The proportion total European deal value coming from the US dropped from 67% to just 40% – with a total income of $64.3bn.

Strong interest in European tech companies has seen investment from China and Japan reach the highest levels seen. The proportion of investment from these companies now stands at 15.8% – with $6.6bn worth of deals.

This contributed to a strong overall performance for European tech companies. Total M&A activity reached $201.5bn – up 21% on the equivalent 2014 figure.

But the overall decline in M&A activity has prevented European companies looking further afield for acquisitions and investment in the same way they have in the past. There was a year-on-year decrease of 133 deals – with total outbound deal value falling by 42% to $73.2bn.

Further reading: Pre-election jitters hit M&A activity