Boating Industry

May 2016

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www.BoatingIndustry.com 38 | Boating Industry | May 2016 /// Market Trends /// Saltwater fi shing, freshwater pontoon growth translates to outboard engine sales I n the wake of the economic downturn, it was the pontoon boat segment that was the fi rst to bounce back. With a strong focus on performance-oriented boats that accepted greater horsepower, the growth of the pontoon category paralleled a coincident growth in outboard power. More recently, the large saltwater fi shing boat market has also bounced back, and like pontoons before it, the recovery has been signifi cant with double-digit sales increases each year. And once again, the success of that category is tied to a cor- responding surge in outboard power. Clearly, something's going on behind the transom. According to recent data from the National Marine Manufacturers Association, both wholesale and retail sales of outboard engines continued to show impressive year-over-year growth through the end of the 2015 calendar year. Wholesale out- board shipments in the U.S. were up by 3.1 percent over 2014 totals, while wholesale shipments in Canada were up by a full 15 percent. Outboard sales also grew at the retail level in 2015, fi nishing the year 8.7 percent above 2014 totals and marking a new post-recessionary high. By the end of the year, four out of every fi ve new boats sold were powered by an outboard motor. Big power Over the past fi ve years, large engines of 200 or more horsepower have been driving growth in the outboard category, according to NMMA, and the big motors now account for just under 20 percent of the market in terms of unit sales. For 2015, Engines over 200 hp now represent nearly 20 percent of the market Yamaha has seen growth of more than 300 percent in larger models since launching the F350

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