FRANKFURT – Car and truck maker Daimler AG increased its profits by 48% to 4.0 billion euros ($4.8 billion euros) in 2020 thanks to extensive cost-cutting and a sales recovery in the second half for its highly profitable Merecedes-Benz luxury cars and sport-utility vehicles.
The bottom line improved on 2.7 billion euros from 2019, even as top-line revenue fell 11% to 154.3 billion euros from 172.7 billion euros.
With net cash at year end of 17.9 billion euros, CEO Ola Kallenius said the company had the resources to develop the electric cars and digitalized products and services that are transforming the industry: “We proved our ability to generate substantial cash flow and to drive the ongoing transformation on our own — even under the