In last year’s season, our Silver Arrows won everything that was to be won in Formula 1 racing: the drivers’ championship and the constructors’ championship. That’s a fantastic achievement – for which our drivers and our engineers in Brackley, Brixworth and Stuttgart worked with great determination and perse- verance. But it isn’t just our motorsport colleagues who in recent years have made good progress step by step, but the entire Daimler Group. 2015 was a very good year for Daimler. That is to the credit of our approximately 280,000 employees around the world, and they have therefore earned the special gratitude of the entire Board of Management. Never before have so many customers decided in favor of our vehicles: We sold more than 2.5 million of them. As a result, we generated total revenue of129.9 billion euros –10 percent more than in the previous year. The Group’s EBIT amounted to10.8 billion euros. And our EBIT from the ongoing business increased at almost three times the rate of revenue growth to10.1 billion euros. So we achieved what we promised you: profitable growth.
our fourth record year in succession. Our compact cars were an impor- tant driver of unit sales – thanks also to the new GLA. In addition, we also 39 sold more S-Class automobiles in 2015 than ever before in the history of this model series. We focused last year not only on the new products, but also on the expansion of our international production network. Our new C-Class was a milestone in this respect: In less than six months, we started production of this car on four continents. It is now produced in parallel in Germany, the United States, South Africa and China. But 2015 was also the year of smart at Daimler. Two new models were presented simultaneously: the fortwo and the forfour. smart retains its unique maneuverability, but it is now even more comfortable and even safer. The new smart models are also a good demonstration of our cooperation with Renault-Nissan. They show that synergies in development and an absolutely independent automobile character are not incompatible.
The bottom line is that also in the coming years, we want to further strengthen what has traditionally differentiated Daimler from the competition, exceptional quality and technological leadership for example. At the same time, we aim to reach a level of profitability that is unprecedented at this company. To get there, we are implementing structural changes in all our divisions. This will give us more “water under the keel” to secure our growth strategy over the long term also against headwinds. And it will also make sure we have the financial resources to continue investing in what we do best and where it pays off the best: in fascinating products and technologies. Sincerely yours,
Dieter Zetsche
At the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting, the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose an increase in the dividend to 2.45 euros per share. With this proposal, we are letting our shareholders participate in the company’s success and at the same time expressing our confidence that Daimler can achieve even more. Mercedes-Benz Cars made the main contribution to last year’s excellent results. With unit sales of 1.72 million vehicles, we sold more cars than ever before. This is 3
units sold Global stock markets remained volatile in 2014 and markets in some regions finished the year with substantial gains. In general, the markets benefited from the continued availability of liquidity from the major central banks, as well as from interest rates that remained low.
+18% world
+19%
+24%
111,000 units
87,400 units
western europe
china
+17%
united kingdom
+23%
japan
+14%
united states 4
459,708 units
87,700 units
+20%
south korea
revenue sales 17.0
19.5
2014
2015
billion
revenue
billion
revenue
15% increase Strengthening our core business. The foundations for a strong core business are first-rate products, competitive cost structures and a customer-focused organization. In order to prepare ourselves for growth and a stronger customer focus, we are aligning our organizational structure more strongly with the individual divisions and consolidating our sales and service activities to ensure quality customer service throughout the entire vehicle lifecycle.
quarter one 2015 19.5 billion euros quarter one 2014 19.5 billion euros In the coming years, we will continue to move ahead systemat‑ ically with our investment offensive in order to implement our growth strategy through the introduction of new products, new technologies and state‑of‑the‑art manufacturing capacities. We will therefore invest approximately €11 billion in prop‑ erty, plant and equipment in 2016, as well as more than €13 billion in research and development projects. mercedes-benz cars daimler BUSES mercedes-benz vans daimler trucks
73%
2%
73%
4%
21%
With a comprehensive model offensive, we will renew and extend the product range of Mercedes‑Benz Cars in all segments. Within the framework of the growth strategy that we approved in 2012, we will launch more than 30 new car models between 2012 and 2020. Almost half of those new products have no predecessor model in the current product portfolio; we already launched two of them in 2014: the GLA Coupe and the long-wheelbase C-Class for the Chinese market. In 2015, we will expand our product range with, for example, the Mercedes-Maybach, the CLA Shooting Brake, the MercedesAMG GT and the GLE Coupe, and we will present two additional models of the S-Class. Furthermore we will also renew almost our entire range of SUVs. We will continue to implement our successful module strategy. This will allow us to successfully manage the increasing complexity resulting from additional model variants, as well as ever-shorter innovation cycles and the expansion of our international production network. By increasing the level of standardization and modularization at our manufacturing plants, we are reducing our investment requirements and fixed costs. The classification of lead and partner plants is safeguarding both the transfer of knowledge and the high quality standards associated with “Made by Mercedes” worldwide. For example, we succeeded in launching production of the new C-Class at four plants on four continents in less than six months. 5
concept design Stylistically self-assured presence, exclusive appointments and refined sportiness – the new S-Class Coupe from Mercedes-Benz combines the classic proportions of a large, sporty coupe with modern luxury and state-of-the art technology. As a world premiere, the breathtaking two-door coupe includes a touchpad as standard and can be optionally equipped with a head-up display. Available expressive headlamps, each featuring 47 Swarovski crystals, produce a uniquely striking appearance.
Prof Dr Thomas Weber, member of the board of management of Daimler AG with responsibility for corporate research and MercedesBenz Cars development. “The vehicle leans into bends much like a motorcyclist, thereby reducing the lateral acceleration acting on the vehicle’s occupants. On country roads in particular, this means greater driving pleasure and ride comfort for our customers.”
“As exclusive as it gets – the ultimate in aesthetic sportiness”, stresses Ola Källenius, Member of the Board of Management, Sales and Marketing Mercedes-Benz Cars. “The breathtaking design of the Concept S-Class Coupe marked by sporty-classic proportions and sensual purity is transferred to the series-production S-Class Coupe virtually unaltered. The large coupe has always been the supreme pinnacle of our model range and that’s why it’s now called the ‘S-Class’ again.” “The world premiere of the active curve tilting function demonstrates the possibilities offered by Mercedes-Benz Intelligent Drive,” notes
new technology Mercedes me is your package of innovative services, products and lifestyle offers from Mercedes-Benz, Daimler and our cooperation partners – including access to your vehicle via smartphone, of course. Your personalised homepage covers the individual topics relevant to you. Whether entertainment, travel or lifestyle: registering with Mercedes me gives you access to exclusive life-enhancing offers. Anytime and anywhere.
all relevant vehicle data are sent to the appropriate place and, if necessary, further measures also triggered.This might mean calling your service partner to book your next service appointment, or summoning rapid help from roadside assistance or emergency services. The services available include Maintenance Management, Telediagnostics, Breakdown Management, Accident Recovery and the Mercedes-Benz emergency call system.
The Mercedes connect me standard services can take the strain off you in all sorts of ways – for example by helping with vehicle diagnostics or if you suffer a breakdown or accident. In such cases
The optional Remote Online Services allow you to control your Mercedes very simply from your smartphone. Change your settings or see vehicle information from the comfort of your sofa or from wherever you happen to be. Forgotten where you parked? The Parked Vehicle Locator, Vehicle Tracker and Geofencing* services tell you where you’ve parked or if your vehicle leaves a defined area. The Remote Online Services also show if you need to refuel soon (or recharge your electric vehicle). The Remote Online Services can all be used in conjunction with the equipment option Remote Online. This is available in conjunction with the multimedia systems Audio 20 CD and Audio 20 USB and forms part of the optional multimedia system COMAND Online. Remote Online is part of the standard specification on Mercedes-Benz vehicles with electric drive. Use of the equipment option Remote Online is limited to three years from first registration of the vehicle.
That’s the future of the automobile – and that’s what we stand for at Mercedes Benz. As a pioneer of automotive engineering, we are continually working to shape the future of mobility. Our thoughts and actions are guided by the principle of sustainability. We have already reached many milestones on the road to emission-free and accident-free driving. Intelligent connectivity offers us additional and completely new opportunities to shape the mobility of tomorrow. We plan to use these new technologies to keep our loyal customers satisfied, gain new markets and customers, continue along our path of profitable growth and create sustained value.