daimler-ir-interimreport-q1-2020

D | THE DIVISIONS 31
Daimler Mobility
New business down by 7%
Slight decrease in contract volume to €160 billion
YOUR NOW mobility joint ventures increase their proportion of electric vehicles in Europe
Adjusted EBIT significantly lower than in prior-year period at €58 million (Q1 2019: €491 million)
D.07 Q1
€ amounts in millions Q1 2020 Q1 2019 % change
Revenue 7,101 6,881 +3
EBIT 58 1,209 -95
EBIT adjusted 58 491 -88
Return on equity (in %) 1.6 35.7 .
Return on equity adjusted (in %) 1.6 14.5 .
New business 16,174 17,324 -7
Contract volume 159,628 162,843 1 -2
Employees 12,384 12,680 1 -2
1 As of December 31, 2019
Slight decrease in worldwide new business
In the first quarter of 2020, Daimler Mobility was unable to
escape the far-reaching effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic
and the resulting difficult economic and social conditions,
especially in the financial services business. The measures
taken early in the quarter in Asia, and particularly in
China, led to severe restrictions on business operations and
had a negative impact on unit sales by the automotive divisions
and thus on Daimler Mobility’s new business. Worldwide,
412,000 new leasing and financing contracts were concluded
in a total amount of €16.2 billion, 7% less than in the prior-year
period. Contract volume amounted to €159.6 billion at the end
of March and was thus 2% lower than at the end of 2019.
Adjusted for exchange-rate effects, contract volume decreased
by 1%. Adjusted EBIT amounted to €58 million (Q1 2019: €491
million) and the adjusted return on equity was 1.6% (Q1 2019:
14.5%).
Europe region: new business significantly lower than in
the prior-year quarter
In the whole of Europe, 185,000 leasing and financing contracts
were signed in the first quarter (-19%). New business
decreased by a significant 14% to €6.4 billion. Contract volume
in Europe of €65.7 billion at the end of March was slightly
lower than the level at year-end 2019. At the end of the first
quarter, Athlon und Daimler Fleet Management had 419,000
contracts on their books, equivalent to contract volume of
€6.8 billion.
Asia-Pacific, Africa & China: significantly less new business
New business in the Asia-Pacific, Africa & China region
amounted to €4.0 billion and was thus significantly lower than
in the first quarter of 2019 (-12%). Contract volume in the
region totaled €34.4 billion at the end of March (-4%). In China,
despite the COVID-19 pandemic, 71,000 new leasing and
financing contracts in a total amount of €2.2 billion were concluded
in the first quarter (-16%). The economic revival in
March had a positive impact on new business. Contract volume
in China amounted to €16.3 billion at the end of the quarter,
and was thus at the level of year-end 2019.
Decrease in the insurance business
Daimler Mobility brokered approximately 520,000 insurance
policies in the first quarter of 2020 – a decrease of 3% compared
with the prior-year quarter. The markets that were most
affected by the corona crisis were Germany (-16%), Spain
(-36%) and Italy (-31%).
YOUR NOW mobility joint ventures increase their proportion
of electric vehicles in Europe
As of March 31, 2020, more than 98 million people were using
the mobility services of the joint ventures, which are organized
in the three areas of FREE NOW & REACH NOW, SHARE NOW,
and PARK NOW & CHARGE NOW. They provide solutions for
ride hailing, multimodal platforms, car sharing, parking and
charging the batteries of electric vehicles. Kapten, a ride-hailing
service from FREE NOW, increased its fleet of electric cars
in London to 1,400 and was launched in Paris with 600 electric
cars. SHARE NOW doubled its car-sharing electric fleet in Paris
from 400 to 800 vehicles; the proportion of electric vehicles at
all SHARE NOW sites in Europe is currently 25%. Until February
2020, all services were able to continue along their unbroken
growth path; since March, the declining demand for mobility
resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has had a clear impact.
Slight growth in the Americas
In the Americas region, leasing and financing contracts with a
total value of €5.8 billion were concluded in the first quarter
of 2020 (+7%). In the United States, new business increased by
a significant 9%. Contract volume in the Americas region of
€59.4 billion at the end of March was at the level of year-end
2019.