Daimler Truck CFO Jochen Goetz dies in ‘tragic accident’

FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Daimler Truck’s Chief Financial Officer Jochen Goetz has died in a “tragic accident,” the company said on Sunday.

Goetz, 52, died on Saturday, a statement said, without giving details of the accident.

Goetz spent his entire professional career, spanning more than 36 years, in the Daimler Group, and was largely responsible for the successful spin-off of Daimler Truck Holding from what is now the Mercedes-Benz Group in December 2021.

“He played a key role in shaping today’s Daimler Truck company and, as CFO, consistently worked to ensure that the company is now more economically successful than ever before,” Chief Executive Martin Daum said.

The company statement said Goetz had been distinguished by “his high level of professionalism as well as his positive, hands-on manner”.

Joe Kaeser, supervisory board head and former Siemens veteran, said of Goetz: “Just a few days ago, he convincingly and confidently presented the successful financial development of ‘his company’ to the supervisory board.”

Daimler Truck achieved a second quarter record adjusted return on sales of 10.3% for its industrial business, the company said last Tuesday, even as it faced rising monthly costs from inflation.

Goetz, who had held his current position since July, 2021, leaves a wife and two children.

(Reporting by Vera Eckert, Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Barbara Lewis)

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