Volvo Optimistic Despite Sales Decline

Deliveries from Volvo's truck operations, which include Volvo Trucks, Mack and Renault Trucks, declined 18 percent in July

, compared with the corresponding month in the preceding year. On a year-to-date basis, deliveries amounted to 86,090 trucks, which is 4 percent below the year-earlier period. In Europe, deliveries declined by 3 percent, while North America posted a 14 percent decline compared with the first seven months in 2002.
"Our deliveries in July continued to decline in North America compared with last year, reflecting high production rates in advance of the new emission legislation in 2002. However, order bookings for July supports our somewhat more positive view on the market development, both for Europe and North America," says Volvo's CEO Leif Johansson. On a 12-month rolling basis, total order bookings for the truck brands was down 6 percent compared with the preceding year, with Europe down 11 percent and North America down 12 percent.