BERLIN (AP) -- Daimler AG's chief financial officer said that ongoing market volatility means the auto maker can't rule out a full-year loss in 2009, according to a report published Friday.
Stuttgart-based Daimler's brands include Mercedes-Benz, Smart and Maybach cars as well as Freightliner trucks. Like its competitors, it has seen sales hit hard by the global economic crisis.
In an interview with the daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung posted on the newspaper's Web site, CFO Bodo Uebber underlined Daimler's April forecast of a gradual improvement in operating profitability during 2009 following another significant loss in the second quarter.
He said the company expects a profit from its Mercedes-Benz cars division in the year's second half, according to the report.
"Overall, we are aiming for a positive result for the company in the year 2009," with help from the new E-Class sedan and a cost-saving program, Uebber was quoted as saying. "But one thing must be clear: in view of the volatile markets, we also cannot completely rule out a loss."
