Lazard Deputy Chairman Steven Golub predicts that 2006 will be a good year for mergers and acquisitions, following a healthy 2005, when M&A activity helped boost the firm's earnings 56% last quarter, The Times of London reports. Golub said revenue in Lazard's M&A unit had jumped 40% in 2005  with "activity across all industries from consumer goods to financial institutions, to metal and mining and technology media and telecoms" sure to make this year another winner. According to figures from Thomson Financial Freeman, European M&A deals are likely to generate the highest dollar amount since 2000.