A Reuters report said truck sales in western Europe declined in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, hurt mainly by weak demand for vans.
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Demand for commercial vehicles reflects broader economic trends, and DaimlerChrysler, Volvo, Scania and MAN have suffered from a slump on both sides of the Atlantic in the last three years, Reuters added, citing Brussels-based carmaker association ACEA.
Reuters said that most experts predict a gradual improvement in the European market this year if the fragile economic recovery continues, following an anticipated pick-up in the United States. ACEA reportedly said commercial vehicles sales fell 3% in the fourth quarter of last year to 531,720 units, meaning sales fell 1.4% in 2003 from the previous year.
According to Reuters, Spain and Britain continued to outperform the region in the fourth quarter, posting increases of about 11 and 10% respectively, but ACEA reportedly said Italy saw its commercial vehicles sales fall about 26% in the fourth quarter.
Reuters noted that most of Europe’s truck makers – which have restructured in the last couple of years in a bid to offset falling demand – have still to report 2003 earnings, but MAN earlier this month said it had seen good levels of incoming orders for commercial vehicles in December.
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