MARKET NEWS
Holidays put brakes on bus and truck sales
Tough times for the market and the risk of tough emissions standards
The commercial truck and bus market showed significant declines in April, reflecting the limited number of business days due to a number of public holidays. Only the extra-heavy segment showed a positive figure with growth of 20.70% but this excludes a big decline in extra-heavy sales for Mercedes-Benz of 28.10% ahead of the long-awaited introduction in May of the latest generation Actros. The medium commercial segment was down 12.10%, again with a big drop for Mercedes of 15.10%. Heavy commercial sales also declined 5.30% but this figure is far worse when you take into account the 32.60% drop in Mercedes sales for April compared with April 2017. The bus segment was down 37.70% but Mercedes actually showed positive growth here, albeit with only 13 vehicles at 18.20%. This ensured that April added to the decline for the year to date, with the medium segment down 12.9% and heavy truck sales down 13% excluding a 36.20% drop for Mercedes. The extra-heavy market excluding the non-reporti...
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