Despite some reasons to worry, at least one analyst, Robert Buckland of Citigroup, thinks that the merger boom will continue to boom for a while. He compares the current wave with the 1999-2000 wave and notes some important differences, notably the use of cash this time around. Back then, overvalued equities were basically the currency that many strategic buyers used. Stock swaps were common and indeed accounted for about half of all deals. Now cash is the favored currency. He expects cash bids will account for more than 80 percent of the $5.4 trillion in deals this year. Sounds good. But the cash may be less plentiful if the credit markets really stagger. That is a distinct possibility.  

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- here's a look from Financial News Online