Confindustria Nautica: predictive analysis on the industry’s trends.

The superyacht sector closes the 2025 calendar year positively, with 50% of companies expecting revenue growth compared to the previous year and 25% anticipating stability. Analyzing the current order book, the normalization of growth rates is confirmed, with half of the shipyards maintaining their order books at the same levels as 12 months ago and a quarter reporting growth. This trend is supported by the forecasts provided by Boat International on the Global Order Book 2026, which, despite a reduction in global orders from 1,138 to 978, sees the Italian share increasing by almost 3 percentage points, reaching 53%.

This change in scenario for units up to 24 meters is confirmed by data from the sales networks of recreational units. While 2025 closes with negative forecasts for 62% of the sample and stability for the remaining 38%, operators have better expectations for the current nautical year: the share of the sample confirming negative estimates drops to 37%, compared to 50% expecting stability and 13% seeing a reversal of trend, with revenue growth.

Regarding the marine engines sector, a mirrored distribution of respondents is observed for the 2025 calendar year, with 25% predicting growth and 25% forecasting a decline in business volume, while the other half of the sample indicates stability. The sentiment for the current nautical year shows an improving situation: while the share of companies anticipating stability in business volume remains unchanged at 50%, the percentage of the sample estimating revenue growth rises to 37%.

Companies in the accessories and equipment sector provide very varied preliminary data for 2025: while 40% of companies anticipate stability compared to the previous year, there is an equal distribution of 30% between growth (up to +20% compared to 2024) and revenue reduction (between -5% and -30% compared to the previous year). As in 2024, the wide variety of product types and sales destinations (superyachts, small boating, aftersales) can lead to significant differentiation in results. Estimates for the 2025/26 nautical year are substantially similar in the distribution of responses, but with an encouraging increase in positive responses, rising from 30% to 39%.

Finally, the analysis of the situation of companies in the charter and rental sector shows satisfactory results for 2025, with 57% of the sample reporting revenue growth (up to over +20%), 14% indicating stability, and 29% reporting a reduction compared to the previous year, which remains contained within -10%. The sentiment for the current nautical year is very positive, with 64% of respondents expecting growth in business volume, 29% maintaining previous levels, and only 7% anticipating a possible decline.

The picture just described thus confirms the market hypotheses that emerged in September during the presentation of the statistical report “La Nautica in Cifre LOG”: the signs of the expected recovery for the 2026/2027 biennium have already manifested in recent autumn trade events – including the 65th International Boat Show in Genoa – thanks to new models and a strong focus on new market demands and trends, which have indeed sparked renewed confidence in the sector from small boating operators and also confirmed the good performance of the large yacht sector. The forecasts for the current nautical year, notwithstanding the well-known critical currents of the international scenario, therefore appear encouraging for the Italian nautical industry and its supply chain.