14 AUGUST–SEPTEMBER 2019 | International Boat Industry ibinews.com
Markets & Regions
EUROPE | ROUND-UP
2019 LOOKS SET TO BE A DECENT YEAR, BUT THE THREAT OF A NO DEAL BREXIT AND A
GENERAL GLOBAL ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN, MEAN PROSPECTS FOR 2020 LOOK LESS ROSYWORDS: ARLENE SLOANCustomers may have
returned, but confidence is
beginning to look fragile
Complete Climate Solutions: Heating, Cooling & Roofs
Most of those
interviewed for
this year’s overview were
still cautiously optimistic
for the industry’s
performance in
2019N
obody wants a good party to end early
and those in the boating industry would
not be criticized for wanting the band
to carry on playing. After the crippling effects of
the financial crisis – including massive layoffs,
closures and consolidation – boatbuilders,
equipment manufactures and their partners up
and down the supply chain had good reason to
start celebrating again.
Across Europe, industry
news for the past two years
has been largely positive
as companies regained
their footing, restructured
operations, righted balance
sheets, and started hiring and
investing again.
But the ongoing
uncertainties of Brexit and
the US-China trade war are
drowning out the music. After
finally hitting its stride in 2017 – nearly nine years
after the onset of the financial crisis – Europe’s
broad-based recovery began to slow down last
year. Achieving 2.7% real GDP growth in 2017,
growth eased to 2.1% in 2018 and is expected to slow
considerably more in 2019, down to 1.2%.
As our survey of key boating markets in Europe
reveals, results in 2018 were largely positive and
continued an upward trend that some regions have
been enjoying for more than five years.
Boat exports across core boat categories from EU
countries were up 5.2% to €8.6 billion in 2018 andup 57% from 2014, while inboard motorboats – a
particular specialty of European boatbuilders also
show 56% growth since 2014. Boat imports showed
more mixed results last year with gains in outboard
boats, sailboats and inflatables, but a decline in
higher value inboard motorboats, leading to an
overall decline of 13% down to €3.5 billion across EU
countries. However, the improvement in domestic
boat demand is clear across the
past 5 years, where boat imports
have grown 31% across Europe.
Most of those interviewed
for this year’s overview were still
cautiously optimistic for the
industry’s performance in 2019.
Indeed many companies are still
riding fairly high on full order
books so they may not feel the
impact of a weaker economy for
some time to come. Sustained
employment and wage growth
over several years has given consumers the means to
continue enjoying boating, and developments in the
industry, such as boat clubs and expanding charter
fleets, offers enthusiasts many affordable new routes
to get on the water without big outlays.
Softening global trade and the politically inflicted
risks of a no-deal Brexit and extended trade war are
now feeding into business and consumer confidence,
as seen in our economic indicators for European
countries covered in this report, but we can only
hope that those trends don’t take a firm hold ... and
the music continues to play for a little longer. n