U.S. companies announced more than 3,000 buyout deals so far this year, with the average deal valued at levels not seen since 1999, according to a new report.

The deals during the first half of the year had a total value of $422.4 billion, according to the data reported this week by Dealogic. The value of the average deal jumped to $130.7 million from $101.3 million in the first half of 2004.

The most recent numbers are in line with 1999 levels. The only time companies announced larger deals was in the second half of 2000, when average deal sizes sat at a ponderous $180 million.

Yet, as the size of deals announced jumped 29 percent, the value of deals completed fell 14 percent from the same period last year.

U.S. companies completed buyouts worth $222.4 billion during the first half of 2005, down from $339.5 billion during the first half of 2004, according to the report. The average value of a completed buyout weighed in at $72 million, or about 55 percent of the average announced value.

In Europe, the value of completed buyouts during the first half of the year surged ahead 33 percent. European companies did $231.7 million worth of acquisitions from January to June 2005, up from $210.7 during the same period last year. The average deal value was the same as that in the U.S.—$72 million.

European companies announced $309.3 billion in buyouts, with an average value of $91.5 million.

Despite the robust return in average deal valuations, the number of deals getting done hasn’t reached bubble levels, suggesting buyers are willing to pay top-dollar, but are more selective than before.

The number of deals announced in the first half of 2005 is about 65 percent of the number announced in the second half of 1999 and less than half the number that were completed in the first half of 2000.