In 2018, DAF Trucks broke all records. Thanks to an unprecedentedly high market share of 16.6%, DAF has become the second largest brand in the segment of heavy-duty vehicles (over 16 tons) in Europe. In addition, DAF is the European market leader in the tractor segment with a market share of 19.8%.
In 2018, the volume of sales of cars with a carrying capacity of more than 16 tons on the European market amounted to almost 319,000 units, while in 2017 this figure was 306,000 units. “Throughout last year, the economic situation in Europe remained favorable. This led to high demand for transport services and, accordingly, for trucks,” says Harry Walters, president of DAF Trucks.
Market leader in seven European countries
As in previous years, in 2018 DAF remained the market leader in the segment of heavy trucks in the Netherlands (32.0%), Great Britain (26.5%), Poland (23.2%) and Hungary (32.6%). The Dutch truck manufacturer also took the leading positions in Belgium (22.1%), Bulgaria (19.9%) and the Czech Republic (19.5%). In Germany, which is the largest European truck market, DAF once again became the largest import brand, with a market share of 12.3%.
A stable part of the market in the segment of cars with a carrying capacity of 6-16 tons
In 2018, the total volume of sales of light-duty vehicles (6-16 tons) on the European market fell slightly below 52,000 units. In this segment, DAF’s share is 9.0% of the market. DAF is the leader in the light truck market in Great Britain (32.0%) and Ireland (18.2%).
Further growth outside the European Union
DAF sold 8,700 trucks outside the European Union. With the release of a new generation of DAF trucks of the Euro 6 environmental standard, DAF managed to strengthen its position as the market leader in Taiwan. DAF’s share also increased in Israel, Belarus and South Africa, and in Indonesia the company sold a record number of trucks. Assembly of CF models has begun at the PACCAR plant in Bayswater, Australia.
DAF has also sold almost 3,500 PACCAR engines to leading manufacturers of city and touring buses and specialist vehicles worldwide. In addition, in 2018, the company made the first deliveries of engines to Singapore and Myanmar.
“DAF is committed to further growth”
“In 2018, in cooperation with our professional dealerships, we created a solid foundation for future growth,” says Richard Zink, member of the Board of Directors responsible for marketing and sales. “Our customers highly value our trucks for their reliability, low operating costs and high level of comfort. Thanks to these advantages, we managed to attract many new customers last year – from small businesses to large international fleets – and thus increase our share on the market from 15.3 to 16.6%. We are very proud of the fact that DAF is the leader in the European truck market. We have the right solution for any transport solution.”
Record volumes of production
In order to meet the high demand for trucks, the DAF company produced a record number of small, medium and heavy-duty vehicles in 2018. The total volume of production exceeded 67,000 units of equipment, which is 10.1% more than last year. DAF estimates that the heavy-duty vehicle market will remain stable in 2019, with sales of between 290,000 and 320,000 units.
