Daimler truck revenue slides on weak NAFTA demand

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Updated Jul 26, 2016

Trucking's Future Now - Equipment - Freightliner Inspiration TruckDaimler last week reported a 3 percent bump in its second quarter profit, but that $2.6 billion was tempered with an expectation of significantly lower truck sales to round out the rest of the year.

Revenue from the truck division fell to $9.5 billion from $10.3 billion for the same quarter last year.

Second-quarter sales of 108,300 units by Daimler Trucks fell 13 percent below prior-year, mainly the result of the negative development of many core markets outside the EU30 region (European Union, Switzerland and Norway), the company says.

In the EU30 region, truck sales increased by 13 percent to 20,400 units. Sales in the NAFTA region decreased to 40,600 units versus 49,400 last year, but in Classes 6-8 the company strengthened its market leadership with a 40.9 percent stake of the market.

Daimler predicted demand for medium- and heavy-duty trucks perceptibly below the prior year volume for the remainder of the year.

“In North America, weak overall investment is having a significant impact on the truck market,” the company penned in its earnings analysis. “From today’s perspective, demand for Class 6-8 trucks is likely to decrease by approximately 15 percent.”

“For the year 2016, Daimler Trucks now expects significantly lower unit sales than in 2015. In the NAFTA region, we anticipate a considerable decrease in unit sales due to generally weak demand.”

Jason Cannon has written about trucking and transportation for more than a decade and serves as Chief Editor of Commercial Carrier Journal. A Class A CDL holder, Jason is a graduate of the Porsche Sport Driving School, an honorary Duckmaster at The Peabody in Memphis, Tennessee, and a purple belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu. Reach him at [email protected]