Global macro-economic headwinds will be the factor to watch most closely over the coming months as uncertainty abounds, Olof Persson, CEO at Volvo Group told CNBC's "Squawk Box."
"We'll be extremely observant because especially in Europe there is a lot of uncertainty in the markets which has shaped our 2013 forecasts both macro-economically and legislation-wise with the new emissions regulations in the EU," Persson said.
The world's number two truck maker missed earnings expectations for the third quarter Wednesday and warned investors it saw no growth in its main European and North American truck markets next year. Shares in the group fell.
"The third quarter for us has been characterized by two things; lower demand which is normally higher in September but that didn't happen so we put the brakes on and made sure we didn't over-produce. We've also had one-off costs so if you take those away the underlying trucks business profits were still decent," Persson said.
He added that the U.S. market faced its own particular challenges including the imminent presidential election and the looming "fiscal cliff." However, he added there remained some bright spots in the U.S. market.
"If you look at the dealer retail in the U.S. it's holding up quite well but sold off from dealer inventories and dealers have not placed orders into the industry.
That is also part of the uncertainty there and we'll have to follow things very carefully and see what comes next year," he added.
- By CNBC's Shai Ahmed, Follow her on Twitter @shaicnbc
