SHANGHAI, Aug. 26 -- The value of merger and acquisitions (M&A) in China hit a three-year-high in the first half of the year, according to a report released by accounting firm PwC on Tuesday.

The M&A reached 183 billion U.S. dollars in value in the Jan.-June period, up 19 percent from the second half of last year, showed the report.

PwC partner Liu Yan said one major reason for the record high is that there were over 30 big deals valued at more than 1 billion U.S. dollars each.

Liu said the big deals were mainly in the Internet sector and financial services.

The record high also came as investors sought M&A to boost growth to cope with increasingly fierce competition amid industry restructuring, said the report.

PwC also predicted more M&A activity in the second half.