Yacht Market Reverses Trend, Volume Remains a Mystery
Market reports indicate that although superyacht sales saw a slight decline in 2024, the global fleet of active superyachts over 30 meters has surpassed 6,000 vessels, demonstrating strong market resilience.
With the ongoing global economic recovery and the continuous expansion of the high-net-worth population, the luxury yacht market is showing vigorous vitality. Authoritative industry data reveals that by early 2025, the global total of active superyachts over 30 meters had reached 6,022, with 123 of them temporarily out of service.
This figure highlights a consistent growth trend in the high-end leisure nautical sector, while sales of ultra-large yachts over 80 meters have nearly doubled compared to 2023.
01 Current State of the Global Yacht Market
The newly released State of the Yacht Industry Report indicates that global sales of superyachts over 30 meters declined slightly in both the new-build and pre-owned segments.
New-build yacht transactions dropped from 206 to 195, while pre-owned yacht sales decreased from 315 to 305, representing a year-on-year contraction of approximately 3-5%.
Analysis by size segment shows that new-build sales in the 30-40 meter range slowed noticeably, while the 40-50 meter segment grew for the second consecutive year. The 50-60 meter segment remained stable, but sales in the 60-80 meter segment were nearly halved.
This divergence reflects the varied performance across different market segments.
02 Yacht Manufacturing Landscape
The global yacht manufacturing industry shows clear regional concentration. Italy maintained its leading position in total build volume, with an average of 16 deliveries per shipyard.
Turkey, however, led in the number of active shipyards, though with an average of only 2.7 deliveries per yard.
Poland also plays a significant role in global yacht production, ranking as the world's fifth-largest yacht producer and second globally in the production of yachts under 10 meters.
The Polish yacht industry exports 95% of its products, with small-sized yachts dominating its output.
03 Market Demand and Consumer Profile
In terms of ownership distribution, American clients dominate the global superyacht market. Data shows that among yachts over 40 meters, 23% are owned by U.S. clients, with Russia and Greece each accounting for 7%.
In recent years, the number of Russian buyers has decreased sharply, while the number of Chinese owners has grown significantly, indicating rising purchasing power from emerging market consumers.
Although transaction volume in the pre-owned yacht market fell by 3%, the final average asking price increased by 14% to €33,865 per gross ton, reflecting the value retention and investment appeal of high-end yachts.
04 Market Outlook and Predictions
Looking ahead to 2025, industry experts predict a recovery for the superyacht market. With increased availability of speculative builds and stabilizing prices, the segment for ultra-large yachts over 80 meters has already shown strong signs of rebound.
This trend is primarily driven by American buyers, signaling the start of a new growth cycle.
Long-term projections from industry research suggest the global luxury yacht market size will reach $14.388 billion in 2025, and is expected to hit $21.849 billion by 2032, representing a compound annual growth rate of 6.15% (2025-2032).
This indicates sustained growth potential for the luxury yacht market.
The global yacht market is entering a new phase of high-quality development. According to industry forecasts, with increasing availability of speculative builds and price stabilization, the superyacht market is expected to recover in 2025.
The strong performance in the segment for yachts over 80 meters already signals the beginning of a new growth cycle.
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