Taipei, Aug. 4, 2006 (CENS)--To reinforce Taiwan`s yacht industry, the government has decided to invest NT$450 million (US$13.64 million at US$1 = NT$33) to establish two yacht piers in Kaohsiung, a harbor city in southern Taiwan, according to the Cabinet-level Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD).

Today, Taiwan is the world`s No. 5 and Asia`s No. 1 producer of large-sized yachts in terms of production value. However, Taiwan`s yacht manufacturers have in recent years faced increasing threat from their counterparts in mainland China, which squeezed into the world`s ‘top 10` club in 2005, at No. 8 place on the list.

Last year Taiwan exported a total of 235 yachts valued at US$220 million, a sharp rise of near 30% from US$170 million posted a year earlier, according to the statistics released by the Taiwan Yacht Industry Association (TYIA).

TYIA statistics also showed that in 2005 Taiwan-made export yachts had an average selling price of US$938,000 each, rising by 24% from the corresponding figure of 2004. However, in the same year Taiwan`s share of the U.S. market for yachts dropped to 64% in 2004 from a peak of 78% posted in 1999.

CEPD indicated that currently there are a total of 31 yacht manufacturers in Taiwan, with 21 of them located in Kaohsiung. Accordingly, the government has decided to set up two special yacht piers there, hoping they can give a big shot to the growing yacht industry on the island.

CEPD estimated that starting in 2010 Taiwan`s yacht industry might see an annual rise of 15% since the demand for luxurious yachts in the global market is going up. To strengthen competitiveness in the world market, CEPD suggested that domestic yacht makers have to boost their manufacturing capability and catch up the world trends.

Exports of Taiwan-made Yachts, 2001-2005
Year	No. of yachts	Export value (US$100 M)	Growth (%)
2001	296	1.71	8.55
2002	345	1.57	-8.38
2003	269	1.29	-17.23
2004	234	1.7	30.81
2005	235	2.2	29.81

Source: TYIA

(by Judy)