Yacht world seduces China, Brazil's super-rich

[FarCenter]

AFP - Russian oligarchs and their floating palaces helped keep the luxury yachting industry buoyant through the crisis, but super-rich buyers from China and Brazil are rushing to join them on the waves.

Emerging market billionaires are showing a keen interest in superyachts, according to pundits at this year's Monaco Yacht Show, the prestigious four-day global yacht gathering that wrapped up here on Saturday.

"The BRIC -- Brazil, Russia, India and China -- nations are much more active than they were three to four years ago," Ellie Brade, Pacific editor at the Superyacht Group monthly magazine told AFP.

China now has 115 billionaires, without counting Hong Kong, according to the Forbes rich list, second only to the United States and ahead of Russia's 101.

http://www.france24.com/en/20110925-yacht-world-seduces-china-brazils-super-rich

If you have a billion dollars, you are "upper class". (Actually, $100 million probably lets you scrape into the upper class, especially if you have good family connections.)

[Earth_First]

1. $350 million dollar super-yacht

[BiggJawn]

2. "Yacht".

It ain't a yacht if you measure its size in Gross Tons instead of feet LOA...
These are private liners.

[dkf]

3. Are they buying them from us?

I sure hope so.

[WinkyDink]

5. Yeah, right. WAY TO MISS THE POINT.

[dkf]

6. What are we supposed to do about the super rich in China and Brazil?

It's not like we can tax them.

[DainBramaged]

7. No not a chance, we gave up building super yaghts years ago

http://www.nauticexpo.com/boat-manufacturer/mega-yacht-11445.html?gclid=CPazzujYuasCFUJo5QodJlJPgQ

[dkf]

8. Bummer.

[WinkyDink]

4. Oh, but think of all the jobs going to the yacht-builders, stewards, furnishers, .....!

*sarcasm*