Hanover,   21   September   2010   –   The  European  commercial  vehicle
manufacturers  are  cautiously  optimistic  with regard to production and
sales  in 2010 and 2011. “We will see better sales and earnings this year
than  in  2009.  The  recovery  in  demand  that we saw in Asia and South
America  at  the  end  of last year is now becoming more and more visible
also  in Europe”, said Leif Johansson, Chairman of the Commercial Vehicle
Board of ACEA and President and CEO of Volvo Group, speaking to reporters
during the ACEA press conference at the IAA in Hanover.

In  Europe,  recovery  from  the deep crisis levels 2009 is slow, but the
upturn  seems  relatively  broad  based.  Still,  demand  for  commercial
vehicles  is  closely linked to economic growth and demand for transport,
and  the  overall  economy  remains  fragile  and  vulnerable to external
shocks.

Although the crisis hit hard, the European manufacturers have shown great
resilience  during  the  extraordinary economic downturn and successfully
defended  their global technology leadership in the fields of environment
and  safety.  Despite  sales volumes being cut by 50 to even 80% over the
course  of  2009,  investments in R&D were to large extent sustained. All
manufacturers  are  working  hard  to  prepare themselves for the EURO VI
emission  standards  coming  into  force  soon and they have made further
progress  in  the  fields  of  fuel  efficiency, alternative drivetrains,
renewable fuels and energies.

“The  crisis  has  certainly  reinforced  the need to put a comprehensive
industrial  policy  and  a  supportive  policy  environment higher on the
agenda  of  European policy makers”, said Johansson. “Europe has a strong
R&D  and  manufacturing  base – our commercial vehicle industry is a good
example  –  and  the  EU institutions must make efforts to strengthen its
industries in order to ensure future economic growth and prosperity.”

About ACEA – Commercial Vehicles
The  ACEA  commercial  vehicle  members  are  Daimler Trucks, DAF Trucks,
IVECO,  MAN  Nutzfahrzeuge,  Scania,  Volkswagen  Commercial Vehicles and
Volvo  Group.  They  produce trucks and engines in over ten EU countries,
including  Germany,  France,  Italy,  Spain,  Sweden, the United Kingdom,
Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland and the Czech Republic.

In  the  first quarter of 2010, European truck production reached 415,626
units,  or  36.4% more than in the same period of 2009. The production of
heavy-duty  vehicles,  however,  decreased  by  5.2% to 65,156 units. The
manufacturing of vans increased by 51.3% to 343,628 units.

For further information, please contact Sigrid de Vries, Director
Communications, ACEA +32 485 88 66 47 or sv@acea.be
Please also visit www.acea.be