Yachting

(Wang) #1

NEWS


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IN BRIEF


Portaferry festival
The Portaferry classic boat and
music festival is inviting classic
boats to Strangford Loch from
17 to 19 June. The festival will
include music, classic cars,
theatre and a farmers’ market as
well as the sailing regatta.

Tayport all-tide access
Tayport Harbour in Fife has
been dredged and can now be
accessed by most yachts on all
but the lowest spring tides. The
entrance channel is now 0.8m
below chart datum and the
harbour is 0.6m below CD.

Contessa 26
anniversary
The iconic Contessa 26 is 50
years old this year. 20 boats
have signed up for the 50th
Anniversary Rally (29-31 July), in
Lymington, and it is hoped more
yachts from the class will also
come. http://www.contessa26.net

Volunteer skippers
wanted
Team ViSA GB (The Visually
Impaired Sailing Association
of Great Britain) is looking for
experienced sailors, particularly
offshore Yachtmasters with a
valid commercial endorsement
to sail as volunteer skippers.
http://www.visa-gb.org.uk

Killcord failures
An RYA survey has found
that basic safety features on
outboard engines are worryingly
unreliable. One third of outboard
users have experienced the
failure of a killcord or kill switch.

Gun smugglers on trial
Three men and a woman have
gone on trial accused of illegally
importing 31 automatic weapons
into the UK. The gang is accused
of smuggling the weapons
across the Channel by boat.


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The marine industry in
the UK is beginning to
recover from the recession,
new evidence shows. A
global survey published by
Interconnection Consulting
has found that 2014 was the
lowest point for new yacht
sales in the UK, when 550
new sailing yachts between
26ft and 60ft were sold.
In a modest increase, 559
yachts were sold in the UK
in 2015, and this fi gure is forecast
to increase to 611 by 2018. This
remains signifi cantly lower than
the 707 new yachts sold in 2009
at the start of the recession.
This puts the UK slightly ahead
of the rest of Europe where 2015
sales were lower than in 2014 at
6,432. A recovery across all yacht
sizes in Europe is not expected
until 2017. Germany is still the
largest market for new boats in
Europe, and motorboats continue
to dominate, accounting for 65
per cent of all new boats.
British Marine (BM) fi gures also
show growth in the UK marine

industry for a fourth consecutive
year. BM’s bi-annual industry
trends survey shows that revenue
across has increased by 1.1 per
cent from 2013/14 to £2.97bn in
2014/15, driven by an improving
domestic market, although
exports remain challenging. Yacht
brokerage is one sector that
appears to be recovering with just
under half of brokers reporting
improving sales.
Sue Grant, managing director
of Berthon International, was
upbeat. ‘We see a lot more
activity in the market than a few
years ago and new blue water

yachts are selling well,’ she
said. ‘As the pound falls
against the euro, buying
a new boat from abroad
is going to become more
expensive, which could
increase demand for
high-quality second hand
boats, but good pricing and
presentation are key.’
The possibility of a UK
exit from the European
Union is behind the currency
movents, said Laura Parsons,
spokesperson currency traders
TorFX: ‘After the referendum was
announced, UK fi nancial markets
have been thrown into chaos. The
pound plummeted to a 16-month
low against the euro. Sterling
could lose 15 per cent of its value.’
Matt Attree, sales director at
Clipper Marine, the Bavaria dealer
and yachtbroker, was also feeling
positive: ‘2015 was a record year
for us both in new and used
boat sales, and saw us return to
pre-downturn levels. The number
of boats built has gone down,
driving demand for used boats.’

PHOTO: GRAHAM SNOOK

Domestic sales and
high-end yachts are
driving a recovery in
the UK marine industry

A large number of UK yacht brokerages
reported business to be improving

PHOTO: ALAMY

UK leads Europe in yacht sales recovery


MAY 2016 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com 5
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