Automotive World - Sweden: Volvo Trucks breaks European deliveries record in October; reports Group sales for first ten months

Sweden: Volvo Trucks breaks European deliveries record in October; reports Group sales for first ten months

Friday, November 23, 2007, AutomotiveWorld.com

Total deliveries of trucks from Volvo Group's four commercial vehicle brands from 1 January-31 October amounted to 185,048 units, an increase of 2%, compared with the year-earlier period, the company has announced.

Of the OEM's brands, deliveries of Nissan Diesel trucks, however, only include the 1 April-31 October period, Volvo notes. Excluding the Japanese subsidiary, deliveries amounted to 157,031, a 13% fall year-on-year.

Total Group deliveries for the year to the end of October numbered 102,366 units, a 9% rise on the 94,092 vehicles delivered between 1 January and 30 October 2006.

By region, combined sales for the four brands totalled 80,556 in Western Europe, versus 80,492 year-on-year, while deliveries in Eastern Europe more than doubled to 21,810 units from 13,600. Other regions showing year-on-year rises were South America (25%), Asia (221% - from 9,412 to 30,191) and Middle East (38%). There was, as expected, a large drop for North America, to 25,363 from 59,656 (down 57%).

Total Volvo Group deliveries in the ten month period numbered 185,048, versus 180,968 units in the same period of 2006.

For Mack, global registrations for the year to the end of October totalled 15,361 units, a 51% drop compared with the 31,119 registrations in the year-earlier period. The US-based brand notes that its numbers reflect continuing soft demand for heavy-duty trucks in North America as a result of customers pre-buying trucks in 2006. A further factor is the ongoing weakness in demand for road freight and a drop-off in housing construction in the US.

Total deliveries for Mack in North American markets numbered 11,478 compared to 27,715 in the first ten months of 2006, a decline of 59%. There was better news in Asia, South America and remaining global regions, which rose to a combined 4,087 units from 3,479 in the first ten months of the previous year.

With only a small presence in North America, Renault Trucks was hardly impacted by the downturn in the US market and reported global deliveries of 63,539 trucks and vans in the first ten months, a 2% dip year-on-year. Deliveries of the Renault Premium range stood at 21,000 units in the first ten months, an improvement of 11% compared with the previous year.

Sales in Europe were flat (55,184 units versus 55,020), while in North America, they fell to 398 vehicles compared to 718 in the first ten months of 2006. There were also small drops in deliveries in South America, Asia, the Middle East and other markets.

As for the Volvo Trucks brand, deliveries during the period of 1 January-31 October amounted to 78,131 vehicles, down 8% year-on-year. Nevertheless, Volvo had its best ever month in Europe in October with slightly more than 6,000 vehicles delivered. European deliveries are up 21% so far this year, of which Eastern Europe accounts for most of the increase - a rise of 86%.

Production disturbances in North America earlier in the year resulted in a large order backlogue with long lead-times, Volvo notes. To address this, Volvo Trucks has temporarily increased production rates at the New River Valley Plant from the end of October until the end of January.

For Europe as a whole, Volvo Trucks delivered 47,162 units in the first ten months (up 21%) compared to 39,072 in the same period of 2006. In North America, sales fell to 12,117 units from 31,223, a 61% drop. There were, however, rises in South America (26%), Asia (16%) and the Middle East (24%). Overall, the Volvo Trucks brand saw its global sales fall 8% in the period to 78,131 units from 85,337.

Finally, Nissan Diesel reported deliveries during the period of 1 April-31 October of 28,017 vehicles. In Europe, only 20 trucks were sold (all in Eastern Europe), while in North America, the brand delivered 1,370 trucks, with 662 trucks registered in South America, 20,136 in Asia, 1,798 in the Middle East, 18,338 in 'Other Asia' and 5,829 in other markets. Volvo Group reported no year-on-year figures compared to the division's performance under the its former owner, Nissan Motor. For the ten months to the end of October 2007, Nissan Diesel sold 28,017 vehicles worldwide.

Published on Friday, November 23, 2007