Daimler profits plunge in 2019 on dieselgate costs
AFP, Stuttgart, Germany
Daimlers chief executive Ola Kallenius suffered a grim first year in post in 2019 as
profits tumbled at the Mercedes-Benz parent company due to billions in costs from the dieselgate scandal, while thousands of job cuts lie ahead.
We cannot be satisfied with our bottom line, Kallenius said in a statement yesterday, pointing to measures to cut costs and to increase cash flows after net earnings slumped 64 per cent year-on-year, to 2.7 billion euros ($2.9 billion).
Top of Stuttgart-based Daimlers list of problems is dieselgate, a cash black hole that sucked in some 4.0 billion euros last year in provisions for governmental and legal proceedings and measures.
The total charges mounted to 5.5 billion when counting in a mass recall of vehicles fitted with faulty airbags from supplier Takata.
On top of those costs, massive investments in new technology like battery-powered and automated cars weighed on profitability. But a bright spot came on the sales side.
