STOCKHOLM, April 25 (Reuters) - World number two truck maker Volvo posted a much sharper than expected fall in first-quarter earnings on Thursday as weak demand pushed sales volumes to their lowest level since the height of the 2008/2009 financial crisis.
The Swedish company said operating earnings tumbled to 482 million crowns ($72.7 million) from a year-ago 6.24 billion to come in well below a mean forecast of 2.02 billion seen in a Reuters poll of analysts.
Volvo, the dominant global player in the industry alongside Germany's Daimler, said however that it had seen improving demand in several key markets and posted a surprise rise in the order intake in the quarter. ($1 = 6.6300 Swedish crowns) (Reporting by Niklas Pollard and Helena Soderpalm)