Monday's headlines: Deal-making trend could exceed the height of the 2007 boom

M&A is looking good. This, according to a Bloomberg article quoting Evercore's Roger Altman, who predicts the current upswing in deal-making will peak to exceed the record $4 trillion of takeovers at the height of the 2007 merger boom. Altman says M&A cycles tend to last five to seven years, and we are currently two years in.

According to the article, hot dealmaking industries include natural resources, health care, financial services and technology. There have been 23 corporate takeovers valued at more than $5 billion so far in 2011 -- double the number a year earlier. While the majority of deals this year have been in North America, 14% of deal volume involved a company from Brazil, Russia, India or China.

Other news:

HSBC's Q1 profit rose 58% on the quality of its loan portfolio, yet it may take three years to meet its cost-reduction target after expenses jumped. [Bloomberg]

More than $29 billion in municipal bond debt will likely be refinanced before it becomes due this quarter.[Financial Times]

Russian president Medvedev is seeking to create a $10 billion state-backed private equity fund to attract global private equity groups and sovereign wealth funds.[Financial Times]

HSBC and Barclays will pay customers more than $2 billion for improper personal-loan insurance. [BusinessWeek]

A 29-year-old asset manager defends his $4 million investment in a mysterious Chinese fertilizer company. [BusinessWeek]

Hedge funds, once "unregulated," fall into the regulatory net. {Forbes]

HSBC delays its decision on whether to relocate its headquarters until UK banking rules are published. [Telegraph]