Sentiment towards the global economy has started to shift. A mood of optimism – while still tempered with caution – has returned. Yet, as Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson reports in this issue, the days when billionaires were the standard bearers for Wall Street or the City of London are long gone. Rich lists are now seen as a curse rather than a mark of success; PRs are employed to shield rather than promote their clients.

Caution has also filtered through to the superyacht market, Victor Mallet reveals. Contracts are down, as oligarchs and entrepreneurs move to cancel or downscale existing orders.