Daimler Truck lifts guidance, buys back stock, but tariffs and Chinese rivals bite
Guidance raised and €1.1bn buyback despite tariff hit Daimler Truck raised its full-year 2026 outlook and announced a new €1.1 billion share buyback, even though second-quarter industrial profit fell 22% on North American tariffs. A buyback shrinks the number of shares, which can lift the price per share, and higher guidance signals management expects better trading ahead.
This is the single biggest company-specific event of the period and directly moves the stock.
Toyota joins fuel-cell venture cellcentric as equal partner Toyota signed a binding deal to take a one-third stake in cellcentric, the fuel-cell joint venture Daimler Truck runs with Volvo. A third deep-pocketed partner shares the cost of developing hydrogen trucks and widens the customer base, which supports the long-term value of Daimler Truck's hydrogen bet.
A major partnership that strengthens a key future technology and lowers Daimler Truck's solo risk.
Hydrogen trucking alliance and EU CO2 delay push Daimler Truck joined a Europe-wide hydrogen trucking alliance with Volvo, Toyota, Bosch and energy firms to build refuelling corridors by 2030, and its CEO asked the EU to delay 2030 CO2 targets by three years. Both ease the cost and regulatory pressure of switching to zero-emission trucks.
Shows concrete progress and regulatory relief that reduce the risk of the costly electric transition.
Chinese rivals close in as tariffs crush profits Chinese truck makers like Windrose and Sinotruk are setting up European production and offering longer-range electric models, while Daimler Truck's quarterly net profit fell 48% on tariffs. New competition threatens market share and pricing, and tariffs are already eating into earnings.
The main counterweight: rising competition and tariff costs that could cap the gains from the positive drivers.