Daimler AG shares fell Wednesday after the company announced a shake-up at the top, saying Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche will exit his position after its annual 2019 shareholder meeting.
The auto maker said Zetsche will be replaced by Swedish native Ola Kaellenius, responsible for group research at Daimler and Mercedes-Benz Cars. Zetsche is set to become supervisory board chairman in 2021.
Daimler DAI, +0.05% shares fell 1.4% in Frankfurt.
Zetsche’s term had been due to expire at the end of a shareholder meeting in 2021, but the company bumped that up. “In view of the challenges presented by the transformation of the automotive industry, the Supervisory Board intends to prepare a suitable succession at an early stage,” the company said in a press release.