Daimler Cuts Executive Pay

Daimler AG reduced 2012 compensation for its top managers by shrinking bonuses because the company missed last year's profit goals and has scrapped its targets for 2013.

Daimler says it slashed the bonus pool for the company's eight management board members last year by 28% to €4.7 million. As a result, the group's total compensation fell 3% to €27.3 million. Those figures could be adjusted later, depending on the company's medium- and long-term performance.

CEO Dieter Zetsche, who also leads the underperforming Mercedes-Benz Cars unit, took a 6% pay cut to €8.2 million last year.

Daimler reduced compensation for 2013 by 3% to €3.3 billion for truck chief Andreas Renschler, 4% to €3.5 million for CFO Bodo Uebber and 5% to €3.1 million for the car unit's production and purchasing head Wolfgang Bernhard.

In October the company lowered its forecast for 2012 operating earnings to €8 billion from its earlier prediction it would match the previous year's total of €9 billion. Daimler also predicted that its car and truck brands would fall short of 2013 targets for operating profit margins of 10% and 8%, respectively.