Pleasure boat/motor sales climb to $9.62 billion
NORTH PALM BEACH, Fla. – Sales of pleasure boats/motors rose to $9.62 billion in 2003 (from $9.38 billion in 2002) and sales of personal watercraft climbed from $581 million in 2002 to $597 million last year, according to the Recreation Market Report released by SGMA International yesterday.
SGMA’s report showed sales of water skiing equipment were up 4.9 percent from 2002 to 2003, while sales of fishing equipment climbed slightly, from $1.0 billion to $1.03 billion.
Overall, manufacturers’ sales of sporting goods equipment, sports apparel, athletic footwear, and recreational transport items in the U.S. totaled $68.6 billion in 2003 – a 0.5-percent increase over 2002, SGMA said.
Total sales of recreational transport items (pleasure boats and motors, recreational vehicles – excluding motor homes, bicycles and accessories and PWC) showed a 2.1-percent growth rate – from $18.14 billion in 2002 to $18.53 billion in 2003, SGMA said.
The SGMA report is based on data from industry trade associations, a panel consisting of sporting goods companies’ marketing experts, and SGMA market research studies. It should be noted that all figures are based on manufacturers’ shipments (including imports) in the U.S. market and expressed in wholesale, not retail, dollar values, according to SGMA.
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