BERLIN (Reuters) – German luxury carmaker Daimler said on Wednesday that its plan to spin off Daimler Trucks will allow the world’s largest truck and bus maker to become more profitable and focus more on developing technologies to cut carbon emissions.
The spin-off plan, announced earlier this month, should make the unit more agile, profitable and able to develop CO2-neutral drive technologies for trucks and buses, Daimler said in a statement.
Daimler said the truck business had seen a recovery in the fourth quarter, especially in North America and Europe, selling 121,000 units, almost double that of the second quarter, when sales were hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
For 2021, Daimler Trucks forecasts revenue to be significantly above the prior-year level and is aiming for a significant increase in adjusted return on sales to 6-7%, up from 2% in 2020.
(Reporting by Emma Thomasson; Editing by Caroline Copley)
