FRANKFURT: Daimler’s first-quarter operating profit fell 16 per cent on Friday as a 718 million euro ($800 million) one-off gain failed to offset costs from a production delay for its Mercedes-Benz GLE and higher raw material costs.
“We cannot and will not be satisfied with this, as expected, moderate start to the year. We now have to work hard to achieve our targets for 2019,” Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche said in a statement to accompany his final quarterly results as boss.
Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) fell to 2.80 billion euros, below the 2.89 billion expected by analysts despite a 718 million euros valuation boost from the merger of the mobility services divisions of Daimler and BMW. Daimler shares slipped in early trading and were down 0.35 per cent at 0710 GMT. — Reuters
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