The Brazilian arm of Daimler AG-owned luxury vehicle brand Mercedes Benz plans to invest 1.4 billion reais to roll out a new truck range, Reuters reported Aug. 27, citing Philipp Schiemer, president of Mercedes Benz for Brazil and Latin America.
Schiemer told reporters at the Mercedes Benz factory in Sao Bernardo do Campo in Sao Paulo that the investment is part of a previously announced package of 2.4 billion reais through 2022, the news outlet said.
The potential move comes as the automaker expects the domestic market in Brazil to grow in 2020 despite the predicted drop in exports.
"Argentina is our biggest export market, and it showed signs of recovery in the last two months but it is going to fall again from now on, that is clear," Schiemer reportedly said.
The company's Sao Bernardo do Campo facility used to account for almost 50% of exports for Brazil-made trucks and buses. It now only accounts for less than 30%, the report said.
The German company is expected to add a second shift to produce buses in a bid to meet demand, according to the report.
Earlier, Mercedes Benz sold 500 trucks to Brazilian beer brewer Ambev SA and 1,600 buses to the city of Sao Paulo, Reuters added.
As of Aug. 27, US$1 was equivalent to 4.18 Brazilian reais.
