Sector dynamics play a key role in attractive opportunities for private equity deals. The chart on the left shows that declines in oil prices weigh on exits in energy and natural resources. Pressure in this sector is likely to continue given the oversupply of oil, depressed demand, and range-bound prices.

However, activity in technology, in particular software has experienced strong growth. The right chart shows software investment as a share of GDP and software deals as a share of total private equity deals, which have moved in lockstep. The demand for software has only deepened as a result of the pandemic.