A final flurry of large takeovers during the last months of 2016 lifted global dealmaking to its second-best annual level since the financial crisis as appetite for corporate acquisitions continued in spite of political turmoil and heightened regulatory scrutiny.

Merger and acquisition activity in the fourth quarter reached $1.2tn, the busiest period for dealmaking in 2016. A slowdown in Chinese acquisitions in earlier quarters was offset by the year’s largest deal in October: AT&T’s agreed purchase of media group Time Warner for $108bn, including debt.

In total, the volume of global M&A was $3.6tn in 2016, a 17 per cent drop from last year’s record $4.37tn but enough to make the year the second highest for dealmaking since 2007, according to data from Thomson Reuters. Takeover activity has been fuelled by the search for growth by companies in consolidating sectors and the availability of borrowing at attractive rates.