The truck and bus major could have achieved higher sales but for supply bottlenecks last year. Expects sales in 2024 to be between 490,000 and 510,000 units
06 Mar 2024 | 8607 Views | By Autocar Professional Bureau
Following strong demand in its key commercial vehicle markets, Daimler Truck has announced record level results in revenue, EBIT (earnings before interests and taxes), adjusted return on sales (ROS) and industrial free cash flow in 2023. With 526,053 units, 1% more trucks and buses were sold worldwide in 2023 compared ...
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Following strong demand in its key commercial vehicle markets, Daimler Truck has announced record level results in revenue, EBIT (earnings before interests and taxes), adjusted return on sales (ROS) and industrial free cash flow in 2023. With 526,053 units, 1% more trucks and buses were sold worldwide in 2023 compared to prior-year level (520,291 units), despite supply bottlenecks, which prevented even higher sales.
The company sold 3,443 zero-emission trucks and buses, 277% more than in the previous year (914 units). Supported by improved net pricing as well as positive volume and product mix effects in unit sales, the Group’s revenue increased by 10% to a record level of 55.9 billion euros in 2023 (2022: €50.9 billion).
Martin Daum, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler Truck said: “2023 was a record year with outstanding financial results. We achieved an adjusted operating profit of 5.5 billion euros and an adjusted return on sales in the Industrial Business of almost 10%. This means, we are in very close reach of our 2025 ambition. This is a great achievement our global Daimler Truck team can be very proud of. Going forward, we remain determined to unlock our full potential and to deliver strong profitability even in normalizing core markets.”
Key highlights of 2023
Daimler Truck has a strategic ambition to both lead the industry’s transformation to zero-emission transportation as well as to lead in sustained profitability. In 2023, it reached important milestones alongside this journey. This was in the form of both product and service launches and strategic projects such as the joint ventures for battery cell production with Accelera by Cummins and PACCAR, and Greenlane for a public charging and hydrogen fueling network in North America.
In 2023, Daimler Truck expanded its global product portfolio to 10 different zero-emission models. In North America, the new and fully-electric Freightliner eM2 was launched for urban delivery applications. In Europe, the battery-electric long-haul truck Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 celebrated its world premiere. Daimler Truck’s Asian affiliate FUSO handed over first units of its FUSO Next Generation eCanter to renowned customers like Japanese retail giant Yamato, and launched the battery-electric medium-duty RIZON trucks in the U.S. With the publicly acclaimed record run of the fuel cell Mercedes-Benz GenH2 Truck, which covered 1,047 kilometres with one fill of liquid hydrogen, Daimler Truck marked another milestone in its dual strategy of offering customers both battery- and hydrogen-powered trucks.
With the Mercedes-Benz eCitaro fuel cell, Daimler Buses introduced the first series-production electric bus with fuel cell as a range extender, providing a long range and high passenger capacity. The all-new Setra MultiClass 500 LE was launched 2023 to set new standards for low entry inter-city buses. Daimler Truck Financial Services completed its initial global rollout with the commencement of operations in France in 2023. The segment also started a cooperation in Romania and is now active in 17 markets worldwide with financial and mobility services. With a contract volume of €28.3 billion, the segment is one of the world’s largest financial services providers for commercial vehicles.
Outlook for 2024
Due to the continued difficult economic conditions and the lack of catch-up effects, Daimler Truck expects the key truck markets to return to normal levels in 2024. From today’s perspective the Group anticipates the heavy-duty truck market in North America to range between 280,000 and 320,000 units (-16% to –3% vs. 2023) and the heavy-duty truck market in the region EU30 to amount between 260,000 and 300,000 units (-24% to –12% vs. 2023).
Daimler Truck anticipates unit sales in 2024 in a range between 490,000 and 510,000 units (2023: 526,053 units). The Group is expecting its revenue to range between €52 billion and €54 billion in the Industrial Business and between €55 billion and €57 billion on Group level. Daimler Truck is expecting its adjusted EBIT on prior year level. The adjusted ROS of the Industrial Business is anticipated to range between 9.0% and 10.5%. Daimler Truck is expecting a slight increase for the free cash flow of the Industrial Business in 2024.