FRANKFURT, June 28 (Reuters) - The relaunch of Daimler's key E-Class luxury sedan has supported earnings in the second quarter and bolstered the carmaker's optimism that the worst is finally behind it, its chief executive told a German newspaper.
"From today's perspective, not only will we not experience any more negative surprises in terms of the whole year, rather we could even have the chance to develop positively," Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche told Sunday paper Welt am Sonntag.
Although the bottom has likely been reached, the Daimler CEO warned that demand will stabilise at a low level this year with a very gradual recovery beginning in 2010 for certain markets and segments.
"One should not expect that in one year markets will be at the level of 2007," Zetsche said in the interview, published in full length on Sunday.
The Daimler CEO added that he still considered it likely that talks to deepen ties with arch-rival BMW would eventually lead to results the two could present to markets.
"That requires finished agreements and we are not there yet," Zetsche explained.
Unlike fellow Stuttgart-based carmaker Porsche, in which Daimler was reportedly interested in buying a stake, Daimler is not looking for government handouts.
"We do not plan to apply for state aid," he said.
Zetsche denied German media reports in manager magazin and several newspapers that he was looking to acquire a stake in Porsche, reaffirming his statement from two years ago that there was no acquisition target he could see that would strengthen Daimler.
He also explained that while consolidation among car parts suppliers would speed up, carmakers themselves would see only a few defensive deals occur where ailing competitors look to save themselves by linking up with a stronger rival.
Moreover the number of carmakers would not decline as Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has predicted, since new players are emerging in China and India.
"This industry is too closely intertwined with national interests, which is the reason why it seldom follows the pure laws of the market." (Reporting by Christiaan Hetzner; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)