Mercedes 2001 Annual Report Download - page 38

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34 Commercial Vehicles
Consolidation in the Commercial Vehicles division.
Despite a difficult year for the sector as a whole, Com-
mercial Vehicles sold 492,900 (2000: 549,000) trucks,
buses and vans worldwide of the brands Mercedes-
Benz, Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star, Thomas Built
Buses, Setra, Orion and American LaFrance. We there-
fore succeeded in maintaining our position as the
world’s leading manufacturer of commercial vehicles.
Revenues totaled €28.6 billion (-4%). A slight decline in
Western Europe (-1% to €14.4 billion) was accompanied
by drops in North America (-9% to €9.5 billion) and
South America (-16% to €1.5 billion). Operating profit
adjusted decreased significantly to €0.1 billion (2000:
€1.3 billion). This was primarily due to the losses at
Freightliner in the United States, where we introduced
an extensive turnaround program in October 2001.
Full-line product range expanded. The Mercedes-Benz
truck portfolio was expanded in September 2001 with
the introduction of the new Axor truck series, which is
positioned between the Actros and the Atego. In addition,
the new Setra TopClass 400 luxury coach family has
met with a tremendous response. In October, the bus
was also honored with the most important international
Still the world leader
■Business developments significantly impacted by weak market
in North America
■Adjusted operating profit slightly positive at €51 million
■492,900 commercial vehicles sold (–10%)
■Restructuring measures well underway at Freightliner
■Strategic partnerships strengthen market presence in Asia
prize in the sector, the “Coach of the Year 2002” award.
The range of vans was expanded through the addition
of a six-ton variant of the successful Sprinter model and
a new version of the vehicle for the North American
market. We also introduced the new Vaneo compact
van at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt as a
premium product in the fast-growing compact-van
segment.
Mercedes-Benz Trucks remain successful in a difficult
market environment. Unit sales of 107,900 Mercedes-
Benz trucks in the year under review were down 11%
from 2000. The decline was primarily due to sharply
lower demand in the troubled markets of Turkey and
Argentina as well as a drop in demand in Western
Europe, although this was partially offset by growth
in other markets outside Europe. Nevertheless, with
67,300 units sold (2000: 77,700) and a market share
of 22% (2000: 23%), Mercedes-Benz was once again the
leading brand in Western Europe for trucks over 6
metric tons. Mercedes-Benz Trucks also maintained its
leading position in the most important South American
markets of Brazil and Argentina, with market shares
of 34% (2000: 37%) and 35% (2000: 36%), respectively.
Operating profit (loss)
Operating profit adjusted
Revenues
Investments in property,
plant and equipment
Research and development
Production (units)
Unit sales
Employees (Dec. 31)
Amounts in millions 2000
€
2001
€
2001
US $
1,212
1,253
29,804
1,128
974
552,471
548,955
101,027
(514)
51
28,572
1,484
1,015
494,866
492,851
96,644
(458)
45
25,432
1,321
903