Daimler Trucks reaches global sales target

Daimler Trucks is about to reach its sales target for 2013 and to deliver more trucks than in any year since 2006. Despite having to contend with a comparatively difficult market environment, the world’s leading commercial vehicle manufacturer benefited from its global presence and from its technologically leading product range that is customized for each region.

“Daimler Trucks did very well this year, thanks to our extremely attractive product lineup and our growth offensive in new markets. Shortly before the end of the year, we expect that we will surpass last year’s sales figure of 462,000 units, as we previously announced, and thus achieve the best sales result since 2006”, said Dr. Wolfgang Bernhard, the Daimler AG Board of Management Member responsible for Daimler Trucks and Daimler Buses, about the sales development to date. In the first 11 months of the year, the division delivered 433,600 vehicles of the Mercedes-Benz, Fuso, Freightliner, Western Star, Thomas Built Buses and BharatBenz brands. As a result, sales were two percent higher than in the same period last year, when 424,000 units were sold.

Based on first data for December, Daimler Trucks expects to close 2013 with an encouraging sales growth for the full year. The final global sales figures will be presented at Daimler’s annual press conference on February 6, 2014.

In India the overall truck market declined almost 30 percent, due to an unexpectedly pronounced economic slowdown. Even though the Indian Daimler Trucks brand BharatBenz started from scratch, it nonetheless managed to come in fourth in the country’s medium-duty and heavy-duty truck segment. Around 6,000 BharatBenz vehicles had been sold by the end of November. The brand has introduced a steady stream of new models since it began selling in late September 2012, and the rollout is in full swing. The brand plans to further strengthen its market position by compelting its full product range of 17 models in 2014.

Daimler Trucks expects to gain additional growth momentum in future markets as well as existing ones from its Asia Busniess Model, which was introduced in 2013. The new business model enables Daimler Trucks Asia to exploit the potential created by the interlinking of the Japan-based Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp. (MFTBC) with Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV). Through the cooperation between MFTBC and DICV, which initially encompasses the units for product development, production, and procurement, Daimler Trucks Asia is using the strengths of both companies. The first milestone was achieved in May 2013, when the production of five new FUSO models started in Chennai, India. These models are destined for export to markets in Asia and Africa. The first vehicles have been delivered to Zambia, Kenya and Sri Lanka. By 2020 Daimler Trucks Asia plans to sell 290,000 vehicles annually throughout the world.