26th January, 2012
Daimler plans to more than double output of Mercedes brand vehicles to 2.7 million by 2020 in its drive to become the world’s largest premium car maker, a German business magazine reported recently. Daimler and Mercedes CEO Dieter Zetsche plans to build a new plant in China and another in either the United States or Mexico to meet the target, Manager Magazin said.
Daimler has pledged to overtake rivals BMW and Audi, maker of Volkswagen cars, as the top manufacturer of luxury cars by 2020. It sold 1.26 million Mercedes cars in 2011, about 120,000 short of the BMW brand last year. Manager Magazin also cited sources at Daimler saying the company would match the volume target with an operating margin of more than 10 per cent in 2020. By 2017 or 2018, the new North American plant would begin manufacturing the next generation A-Class together with its strategic partner Nissan.