Douglas A. Bolduc

Water from the Ahr River rose more than 6 feet in the suspension parts plant, causing damages in the millions of dollars. No workers were injured.

Volvo reported earnings before interest and tax of 13.24 billion crowns ($1.5 billion) versus a loss of 989 million a year earlier. Sale improved 26 percent to 141.1 billion crowns ($16.2 billion).

The brand's just-unveiled Concept Recharge hints at its design direction for a full-electric large crossover that will succeed the XC90 as the flagship.

Volvo will deviate from using letter and number combinations as it does for models such as the XC90. “This car will have a name, more like a [newborn] child,” CEO Hakan Samuelsson said.

Volvo will start by testing steel made from hydrogen-reduced iron, with the aim of using it in a concept car within the coming years and eventually becoming the first automaker to build vehicles with fossil-free steel.

Volvo's Torslanda factory, near Gothenburg, is the Swedish automaker's first vehicle assembly plant to achieve climate neutrality.

The automaker says that the potential listing being considered for this year could be a "logical next step" on the company's "capital market journey."

The private placement of newly issued shares marks the first time the 3-year-old Volvo subsidiary has gotten the backing of external investors.

The Polestar O project seeks to create a climate-neutral vehicle by 2030.

With the Polestar 0 project, the EV maker aims to cut carbon emissions by re-thinking the entire development process as well as shaking up the value chain.

Volvo's policy will give employees with at least one year of service a total of 24 weeks of leave at 80 percent of their base pay. In the U.S., Volvo employees were previously offered six weeks of parental leave at 100 percent of their salary.

A new, scalable infotainment platform will be shared with Volvo sister brands Polestar and Geely Auto as well as third parties.

Vitesco CEO Andreas Wolf thinks the U.S. might get on the same electrification track as Europe and China.

Volvo aims to be an electric-only brand in less than a decade and plans to sell all its EVs exclusively via its online store. When asked what this means to Volvo's global retail network, Lex Kerssemakers, head of global commercial operations, said no closures are planned.

Volvo's and Geely's positive momentum would have been negatively affected had the sister brands decided to merge, said Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson. He explained why in an interview with Automotive News Europe.