Daimler is to reassign some workers from Mercedes-Benz S-Class production to assembly of the C-Class as a result of a reduction in output of the company’s flagship model. The S-Class will move to one-shift operation at the Sindelfingen, Germany plant until the next generation model is ready for launch in 2013, reflecting weakening demand.
Reuters quotes a company statement as saying: “Workers manufacturing the S-Class will be reassigned to the C-Class assembly line during this period.”
Lower output and sales of the S-Class will undoubtedly be detrimental to Daimler’s earnings in the current and future quarters. Daimler’s guidance at the announcement of its H1 2012 financial performance in late July was that the 2012 EBIT forecast for the Mercedes-Benz Cars division (Mercedes-Benz, smart and Maybach) remained “at the prior-year level.” However, in September, Dieter Zetsche, Daimler’s Chief Executive Officer and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars was reported to have said that the company no longer expected its 2012 EBIT to reach the 2011 level of €5,192m (US$6.78bn).
The company is due to report Q3 financial details on 25 October and a formal revision of guidance for the Mercedes-Benz Cars division is likely.
Daimler recently reported that it sold 132,606 (+2.4%) Mercedes-Benz, smart and Maybach brand vehicles during September. Total sales for the first three quarters of 2012 (1,043,910) marked a 4.7% increase over the record volume achieved in the same period last year (996,855). The company noted the flagship of the brand, the S-Class sedan, had been in the top spot in its segment since the beginning of the year. S-/CL/SL-Class/SLR/Maybach sales in September totalled 6,910, versus 6,575 in the same month of 2011, a rise of 5.1%, taking the year-to-date total to 61,476, compared with 59,136, a rise of 4.0%.
