Daimler says emissions scandal has failed to hit sales
NAN-F-18
Scandal
Berlin, March 29, 2017 (dpa/NAN) German carmaker Daimler said that an official probe into its involvement in the diesel emissions scandal has failed to impact on its business, with the group expecting to post record first-quarter sales.
Even without the figures for March, the manufacturer of Mercedes-Benz cars said the group sales jumped to 15.6 per cent in January and February compared to the same period in 2016.
German prosecutors announced last week that they had widened their investigation into the emissions-testing scandal that has engulfed Volkswagen to include a fraud probe into Daimler employees.
However, Daimler’s development chief Ola Kaellenius told journalists that the diesel share of the group’s sales figures had not been affected by the allegations against the employees.
He said that diesel-powered vehicles represented a “very, very, very important component” of the push to reach CO2 targets for 2020.
Kaellenius said Daimler plans to launch 10 new electric-powered cars by 2022.
“We have to significantly reduce the costs in the coming years,” Kaellenius said, noting the high price of electric cars. (dpa/NAN)
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Edited by Celine-Damilola Oyewole/Abdullahi Yusuf