Daimler Truck warns provide chain troubles not over as Q3 unit gross sales soar By Reuters

By Victoria Waldersee

BERLIN (Reuters) -Daimler Truck reported a 27% soar in third-quarter unit gross sales to almost 135,000 on Friday because the chip scarcity eased, however warned underinvestment in different components of the provision chain was nonetheless inflicting shortages in the whole lot from nuts and bolts to tyres.

“General the provision chain is someway damaged,” Chief Monetary Officer Jochen Goetz mentioned on an analyst name. “The market picked up tremendous shortly …. The investments not taken a number of years again imply some smaller suppliers should not capable of ramp up as quick as we have to.”

Hitting the truck and bus maker’s goal of lowering mounted prices 15% from 2019 ranges by 2025 was tougher in at the moment’s inflationary surroundings, Goetz mentioned.

Incoming orders on the firm have been down 18% on a 12 months earlier than within the three months ended Sept. 30, and down 14% this 12 months to date, an announcement confirmed.

The corporate was proscribing its acceptance of orders in Europe subsequent 12 months to have some room to manoeuvre, Goetz mentioned, however in america books have been open for the total 12 months.

Greater pricing, beneficial change price results and a robust after-sale enterprise pushed revenues up 47% and adjusted earnings earlier than curiosity and taxes up 159%, Friday’s assertion confirmed, confirming outcomes launched in an ad-hoc assertion in late October.

The corporate, which was spun off from Mercedes-Benz final 12 months, raised its outlook in October for full-year revenues to 50 billion to 52 billion euros ($51 billion to $53 billion) from 48 billion to 50 billion euros and mentioned it anticipated earnings to be 5% to fifteen% above final 12 months’s stage reasonably than unchanged, as beforehand forecast.

The soar in earnings was highest in Europe at 316% from the identical quarter final 12 months, in contrast with 111% in North America, historically Daimler (OTC:) Truck’s strongest market.

In Asia, nevertheless, the place a depressed Chinese language market prompted the corporate to decrease its regional adjusted earnings margin final quarter to 1% to three% from 3% to five%, earnings fell 63% at the same time as revenues and unit gross sales elevated.

This was partly because of restrictions in Japan on rising costs on current orders, Goetz mentioned.

Gross sales of Daimler Buses, which didn’t develop in any respect in 2021, are up 18% this 12 months to date and the corporate expects the coach market to bounce again in 2023.

($1 = 0.9772 euros)