Schmitz Cargobull said it was investing in research and development and expanding its aftersales after reporting a profit for the 2022/23 financial year.

The trailer maker said the period was marked by political and economic crises and yet it still managed to increase turnover by 13% to €2.6bn (£2.3bn) and report earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of €108.5m (£93.9m) following a year of losses.

However, it added that EBIT was now at 4.1%, which was still below its 5% target set out in its 'Strategy 2025'.

Andreas Schmitz, chief executive of Schmitz Cargobull AG, said: “The past crisis-ridden years and the great uncertainty in the market have taught us to react agilely to the unexpected.

“We are sticking to our Strategy 2025 and want to further expand our market leadership in Europe with a flexible production network, the right products and sustainable, efficiency-enhancing innovations.

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“After a loss of 15 million euros in 2021/22, the positive result of the last financial year gives us the opportunity to invest more heavily again in research and development, the expansion of aftersales, the optimisation of our production facilities as well as in digitalisation, sustainability and jobs.”

Schmitz Cargobull said its aftersales and digital services proved to be robust during the reporting period and played a “decisive role” in its positive results.

Revenue climbed to Euros 403.9m (£349.6m) from Euros 345.6m (£299.1m) and despite material shortages, supply chain disruptions and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the subsequent war, spare parts availability was maintained at its 29 distribution locations.

Schmitz added that its goal was to transform production plants into ‘smart factories’ and increase productivity by 3%.