BEIJING - Cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the Chinese market increased by almost 100 percent in terms of the disclosed value of the transactions despite a global economic downturn in 2011, according to a report released by Zero2IPO Research Center on Tuesday.

The overseas M&A of Chinese corporations and M&A conducted by foreign companies in China are two major drives for the flourishing Chinese market of cross-border M&A in 2011, said the report.

According to the report, Chinese companies completed 110 overseas M&A deals in 2011 and the disclosed value of transactions reached $28 billion, showing a year-on-year growth of 93 percent and 112.9 percent respectively.

Statistics from the report show that 66 M&A deals were carried out by foreign companies in China, a year-on-year increase of 50 percent. The disclosed value of transactions rose by 209.2 percent to $6.86 billion.

The purchase for $1.62 billion of Chinese snack and candy maker Hsu Fu Chi International Ltd by Nestle, the world's largest food producer, is a stand-out from all the deals in the last year.

The report also pointed out that both the total volume and value of total M&A deals of 2011 in China hit a record high in the past six years.

Founded in 2001, Zero2IPO Research Center is a leading agency committed to providing information in areas of venture capital, private equity, IPO and M&A.