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Volvo truck shipments rise as Asia gives boost

STOCKHOLM - World number two truck maker Volvo said on Wednesday deliveries of its trucks rose 2 percent year-on-year in July as strength in Asia offset weakness on both sides of the Atlantic.

The group, which sells trucks under the Renault, Nissan Diesel and Mack brands as well as its own name, said in a statement deliveries in its biggest market, Europe, fell 5 percent and were down 2 percent in North America.

But in Asia, currently the firm's second-biggest market following the acquisition last year of Nissan Diesel, deliveries rose 16 percent from a year ago, Volvo said.

Volvo has forecast a 10 percent expansion of the European heavy-duty truck market while it expects the North American market to come in largely flat compared to a weak 2007, held back by a deepening economic slowdown and soaring fuel prices.

Europe has so far been less affected by the economic downturn, although Volvo -- the world's second-biggest truck maker after Germany's Daimler AG -- noted in its second-quarter financial report that customers in the region had grown increasingly hesitant to place new truck orders.

Other truck makers, including Volvo's smaller domestic rival Scania, have reported similar trends emerging in a European market where strong demand left manufacturers straining to keep up with deliveries last year.

In Volvo's core western European market, deliveries were down 12 percent, the group said.

‘The downturn regarding the economic situation in Europe, as well as high fuel prices, continues to affect the truck demand adversely,’ Volvo said. ‘The demand on the North American market remains at a low level.’

In total, Volvo delivered 19,243 trucks in July.