Truck and bus optimism on show at Hanover

摘要

The plethora of new truck, van and bus developments at this year's IAA commercial vehicle exhibition in Hanover reflected the air of market optimism pervading the domestic German exhibitors at the show, Alan Bunting reports, Sales of trucks and, to a lesser extent, buses in Germany have surged upward in the last year or more, after several years in the doldrums. Increased economic activity in the former Eastern Bloc, largely led by the latest EU member states, has stimulated demand for clean used vehicles. That has coincided with advances in commercial vehicle engine driveline technology over the past decade bringing immense improvements in long-term reliability. The attraction of four and five-year old Mercedes-Benz and MAN heavy trucks for would-be buyers in countries like Poland, the Czech Republic and even Russia has been correspondingly enhanced. That has boosted trade-in values for German operators, encouraging them to update their fleets sooner rather than later, by ordering new vehicles.