The Financial Post reports in its Thursday edition that a new report suggests mergers and acquisitions in Canada's upstream oil and gas sector could moderate in the next 12 months, after more than $30-billion worth of activity in 2025. Postmedia's Chris Varcoe writes that expectations of more U.S. buyers on the lookout for prime properties, along with more favourable government policies, could still spur action in 2026. Preliminary data from Calgary-based Sayer Energy Advisers indicate the upstream oil and gas sector in Canada saw an estimated $31.2-billion of M&A activity in 2025, a 53-per-cent jump from the previous year. Several large takeovers propelled the tally to an eight-year high, with corporate deals accounting for $24.3-billion of the total, and asset sales making up about $7-billion. The total includes Whitecap Resources' merger with Veren in March, which Sayer pegged at $10-billion, and Cenovus Energy's $8.4-billion takeover of oil sands producer MEG Energy in November. In a new report, ATB Capital Markets projects West Texas Intermediate crude will average $60 (U.S.) throughout this year, while Aeco natural gas prices are expected to strengthen, averaging $3.30 per thousand cubic feet.