Daimler losses mount, car giant scraps dividend

STUTTGART, Germany: Daimler losses mount, car giant scraps dividend. German carmaker Daimler that took heavy loss in 2009 is girding up for a good year in 2010. Last year was its worst year in 14 years. The share value of the company hit a historic low. The company has decided to end its 2009 dividend.

Senior executives at the company are planning to put a 2010 operating profit of more than 2.3 billion euros ($3.12 billion) on display. Also, they revealed that the company’s 2009 loss was 1.51 billion euros.

However, Daimler is sure that this year things would change as car demands globally has gone up by 4 per cent. And with the economy recovering in many parts of the world it is expected that more people would purchase vehicles. Besides, the truck market has also registered a moderate growth.

"Following a significant (20 percent) decrease in 2009, the Daimler Group assumes that its revenue will rise again this year, but will still be significantly lower than in 2008," the company said. The turnover in 2008 had touched 98.5 billion euros. But analysts are of the opinion that gaining profit this year would not be a cakewalk. Before that the company has to do a lot of homework. Is Daimler ready for a big change?