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Daimler Trucks North America Celebrates Recent Successes at the Mid-America Trucking Show

  • DTNA achieves double-digit sales increase in 2010
  • Market forecast for the U.S. and NAFTA revised upward for 2011
  • Presentation of two new Freightliner and Western Star truck model

Louisville, KY – The U.S. economy is recovering better than was expected a few months ago, and truck markets in the NAFTA region recorded double-digit growth in 2010 (+15.1 percent). This growth is also reflected in the results at Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), which saw figures at DTNA improve greatly last year, to 79,382 units (2009: 63,558 units, +24.9%).

“Our sales success in 2010 outpaced the development of the market. In the U.S. and the rest of NAFTA, we are the market leader in the segment of medium and heavy-duty trucks in classes 6 to 8, with a market share in NAFTA of 31.6 percent. We thus increased our market share by two percentage points compared to the previous year’s figure. We also recorded a very positive development of sales in the U.S. market alone, and with a market share of 32.6 percent (2009: 30 percent) we are the most successful manufacturer in this segment. The sales figures for 2011 look very promising. The market share for our medium and heavy-duty trucks has been increased by February to 38.5 percent in the USA and 37.1 percent in the NAFTA region”, Martin Daum President and CEO of DTNA said.

DTNA has started the current fiscal year in a strong competitive position. Andreas Renschler, the Daimler Board of Management member responsible for Daimler Trucks and Daimler Buses, said, “We are expecting significant growth in the U.S. truck market this year, particularly in sales of trucks in Classes 6 to 8. As a result, we will revise our original 2011 growth forecast for the NAFTA region upward. We expect that the truck market in the NAFTA region will grow this year by 30 to 35 percent. Up to now the growth prognosis was 20 to 25 percent. This upturn is resulting in a significant increase in the demand for transport services, and thus also for commercial vehicles — because economic growth means more demand for transport.

To accommodate the rising demand for commercial vehicles in NAFTA, DTNA will expand its production schedule in 2011 and plans to fill a combined total of about 1,300 new positions at all of the truck locations in the U.S. and Mexico in the first half of the year. DTNA’s incoming orders in North America are currently exceeding expectations.

At the Mid America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky, DTNA today presented two new trucks for the so-called vocational segment at a truck show. Vocational trucks are trucks that body builders provide with special superstructures for on-road use or construction site applications.

Vocational trucks are a very attractive and profitable growth segment which is affected very little by cyclical factors. “One out of every four trucks in Classes 6 to 8 sold in the U.S. is a vocational truck. And we now have the Western Star 4700 and the Freightliner SD line-up, all very competitive new products for tackling this market,” Daum added.

Further information from Daimler can be found on the Internet at: www.media.daimler.com and www.daimler.com

This document contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current views about future events. The words “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “should” and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including an adverse development of global economic conditions, in particular a decline of demand in our most important markets; a deterioration of our funding possibilities on the credit and financial markets; changes in currency exchange rates; a shift in consumer preference towards smaller, lower margin vehicles; or a possible lack of acceptance of our products or services, which may limit our ability to implement prices as well as to adequately utilize our production capacities; price increases in fuel, raw materials; disruption of production due to shortages of materials, labor strikes, or supplier insolvencies; a decline in resale prices of used vehicles; the effective implementation of cost-reduction and efficiency-optimization measures; the business outlook of companies in which we hold a significant equity interest, most notably EADS; the successful implementation of strategic cooperations and joint ventures, changes in laws, regulations and government policies, particularly those relating to vehicle emissions, fuel economy and safety; the resolution of pending governmental investigations and the conclusion of pending or threatened future legal proceedings; and other risks and uncertainties, some of which we describe under the heading “Risk Report” in Daimler’s most recent Annual Report. If any of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or if the assumptions underlying any of our forward-looking statements prove incorrect, then our actual results may be materially different from those we express or imply by such statements. We do not intend or assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made.

About Daimler

The company’s founders, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, made history with the invention of the automobile in the year 1886. 125 years later, in anniversary year 2011, Daimler AG is one of the world’s most successful automotive companies. With its divisions Mercedes-Benz Cars, Daimler Trucks, Mercedes-Benz Vans, Daimler Buses and Daimler Financial Services, the Daimler Group is one of the biggest producers of premium cars and the world’s biggest manufacturer of commercial vehicles with a global reach. Daimler Financial Services provides its customers with a full range of automotive financial services including financing, leasing, insurance and fleet management. As an automotive pioneer, Daimler continues to shape the future of mobility. The Group applies innovative and green technologies to produce safe and superior vehicles which fascinate and delight its customers. With the development of alternative drive systems, Daimler is the only vehicle producer investing in all three technologies of hybrid drive, electric motors and fuel cells, with the goal of achieving emission-free mobility in the long term. This is just one example of how Daimler willingly accepts the challenge of meeting its responsibility towards society and the environment. Daimler sells its vehicles and services in nearly all the countries of the world and has production facilities on five continents. In addition to Mercedes-Benz, the world’s most valuable automotive brand, Daimler’s brand portfolio includes smart, Maybach, Freightliner, Western Star, BharatBenz, Fuso, Setra, Orion and Thomas Built Buses. The company is listed on the stock exchanges of Frankfurt and Stuttgart (stock exchange symbol DAI). In the year 2010, the Daimler Group sold 1.9 million vehicles and employed a workforce of more than 260,000 people; revenue totaled €97.8 billion and EBIT amounted to €7.3 billion.

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