Nautical, how are you? I still have a bit of a fever but I’m taking medicine.

The Genoa Boat Show opens on Wednesday, October 1 (through October 6). A good opportunity to look at the health of world boating through numbers.

As usual, the most interesting data come from the world’s leading shipbuilding group, Beneteau, which now brings together dozens of famous brands such as Beneteau itself, Jeanneau, CNB, Lagoon, Monte Carlo Yachts, Scarab, Glastron, Four Winns for example.

In 2013/2014 (the nautical fiscal year is September on September, ed.) in the French leader’s estimate, the world market for pleasure boats closes with a turnover of 5.7 billion, in 2008 it was worth 14.8 billion, the loss was 62 percent. In 2014, their data give a +5%, the first positive figure after years of violent decline. A recovery is expected for our Italy, with + 1.1 percent. Little, but better than nothing.

ITALIAN DATA AND THE COLLAPSE OF LEASING
The trade association provided its figures for Italy. 2014 is expected to close with a small positive sign compared to 2013, but the turnover estimated at around 2.5 billion is roughly what the domestic marine industry was making in 2000. Compared to the 2007 peak of 6.20 billion, 3.7 billion is missing. And no one thinks that in the future we can return to those levels for the next decade.

Perhaps the figure that jumps out at you the most regarding the Italian market is the minus 96 percent in 2013 compared to 2007 of contracts to purchase a boat with Italian nautical leasing. From nearly 2.5 billion to practically zero. This figure is a real indictment of the Italian banking system, which has literally closed the taps, bringing the industry in our country to its knees.

IN THE PORTS OF THE BEAUTIFUL BAY THE ESCAPE MAY BE OVER
Continuing to line up the data we come to another impressive figure, that of the flight of boats from Italian ports, aided and abetted by the fiscal doggedness that has its main killer in the Monti government. An estimated 40,000 boats “escaped” abroad from 2011 to 2013. The practical result (source National Nautical Observatory) is that nautical tourism turnover in Italy has plummeted 46 percent from 4.6 billion in 2010 to 2.5 billion in 2012. If only half of the boats that found berths abroad returned to our ports, the economic benefit would be 244 million with nearly 6,000 new jobs. After the approval of the decrees on the computerized boat registry (codenamed SISTE), similar to the PRA of cars, and the reassuring messages from the new director of the Internal Revenue Service, Ms. Rossella Orlandi, who is concerned about the accounts that see boating tax revenues in the red by 57 percent from 2010 to 2013 (about 630 million euros less), some boat owners are thinking of bringing their boats back to Italy. Especially if VAT on moorings will definitely drop to 10 percent, equalizing it with that of hotels and campgrounds.

POSITIVE SIGNALS FROM THE USA
If it is true what economists say, that trends in the United States anticipate those in Europe, we should expect some positive signs in 2015. In the sailboat sector of all sizes, imports to the U.S. in 2013 marked a 55 percent increase over the previous year, and a further 23 percent increase is estimated at the end of 2014. The domestic production market, again in 2013, was up 5 percent. Also significant was the boom in rental weeks, which was 21,495 in 2013, an increase of 15 percent.

At the end of the Genoa Boat Show, it will become clearer whether the positive signals from overseas will also blow over the old continent.