Markets & Regions
EUROPE | ROUND-UP
S All eyes on potential of domestic market
T
he Italian boating industry
recorded its fifth consecutive
year of growth in 2018, driven
by strong exports. While official figures
won’t be presented until the 2019 Genoa
Boat Show in September, Saverio Cecchi,
the newly elected president of Italian trade
association UCINA, told IBI that total
industry turnover grew by around 9.5%
last year, with boat yards seeing a rise
of 10.4%.
“Italian yards are showing good sales
performances, but we are registering
a particularly good trend for RIBs,
motorboats and
superyachts,” Cecchi
told IBI, adding that
total industry turnover
climbed 60% over the
last four years – a feat
that no other industrial
sector in Italy has been
able to match.
But while exports
are booming, boat
sales in Italy have yet to recover. “The
domestic market, especially in the mid-
range segment, has enormous potentialstill waiting to be fully developed,” says
Cecchi. “For now, the weak economy
Italy is experiencing, compared to the EU
average, and the ongoing lack of consumer
confidence doesn’t allow for a complete
recovery in national sales.”
Exports are leading sales of Italian
boats, with over 80% of production sold
abroad. Provisional export figures for
2018 show a 14% increase on the previous
year, approaching almost US$2bn in
sales. The traditional markets – Europe
and North America- are performing
exceptionally well, says
Cecchi. Sales to the US
were “outstanding”,
he adds, growing by
45% on 2017. The US
alone now represents
a quarter of Italian
exports. “That’s an
excellent reason why
Italian yards should be
concerned by the escalation of the trade
dispute between the US and the EU, which
is now directly impacting our sector with
REAL GDP GROWTH (2018) 0.7%
REAL GDP GROWTH (2019 est) 0.1%
NUMBER OF ADULTS 48.5 MILLION
NUMBER $ MILLIONAIRES 1.36 MILLION
BOAT PARK 578,000
CONSUMER CONFIDENCE
(Change in index points Jun/Jul) +2.2%
NEW CAR SALES
(Change Jan-Jun ‘18/19) +3.5%ITALY
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http://www.awlgrip.com facebook.com/awlgripfinishes twitter.com/awlgrip instagram.com/awlgripfinishesThe domestic
market, especially
in the mid-range segment,
has enormous potential
still waiting to be
fully developed