Daimler to build Actros heavy truck in China - Handelsblatt

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's Daimler plans to start building the Actros heavy truck in China by the end of the decade, Handelsblatt reported, citing the head of the truck division. Seeking to expand its role in the world's largest truck market, Daimler is targeting a five-digit production number for the Actros, the newspaper quoted Daimler Trucks Chief Executive Wolfgang Bernhard as saying in an interview to be published on Tuesday. Western manufacturers are allowed to operate in China by forming joint ventures with Chinese partners. Stuttgart-based Daimler currently produces trucks with China's Beiqi Foton Motor <600166.SS>. The two companies are planning to invest a three-digit multi-million amount in local production of the Actros, and Daimler alone wants to set up 200 dealer and service stations, Handelsblatt said. (Reporting by Andreas Cremer; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)