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By Bloomberg

Volvo AB, the world’s second-largest truckmaker, posted a fourth-quarter loss as a plunge in construction-equipment deliveries compounded the effects of provisions for credit losses and a potential antitrust fine.

The operating loss totaled 2.26 billion kronor ($272 million) compared with profit of 996 million kronor a year earlier, Gothenburg, Sweden-based Volvo said today in a statement. also said. Analysts on average had estimated that Volvo would post a profit. Revenue rose 1.1 percent to 77.5 billion kronor.

A deepening economic slowdown in China prompted the country’s central bank to lower the lenders’ reserve ratio Wednesday, joining peers in monetary easing to stimulate growth. Volvo’s fourth-quarter construction-equipment deliveries dropped 30 percent in the quarter, including a 44 percent plunge in Asia, hurt by “weakness” in emerging markets, especially those that depend on commodities production.

“Whereas previously Volvo enjoyed strong demand from mining companies and very strong margins on those orders, now miners are just not ordering much at all,’ Hans-Peter Wodniok, a Kronberg, Germany-based analyst at Fairesearch, said by phone.

Earnings were also hurt by reorganization costs totaling 830 million kronor as well as previously announced provisions of 660 million kronor for the construction-equipment division’s expected credit losses in China and 3.79 million kronor for a potential European Union truck-pricing fine, Volvo said.

Savings Goal

An efficiency program targeting spending cuts totaling 10 billion kronor in the three years through 2015 will show full- year effects in 2016, it said.

‘‘Our work toward further improving operational performance and lower cost levels has good traction,” Chief Executive Officer Olof Persson said in the statement. “Going forward, we still have a lot of hard work ahead of us, but continue to have a good momentum.”

Volvo also raised its North American commercial-vehicle market forecast, citing a “robust manufacturing environment” as consumer spending bolsters U.S. economic growth. Industrywide deliveries in the region will total 310,000 vehicles compared with an earlier prediction of 280,000 trucks, The European market will rise to 240,000 vehicles from the 228,000 delivered last year, versus an earlier forecast of no growth.

While the North American prediction was “as expected,” the “European forecast seems ambitious, as it assumes very strong demand during the second half of 2015,” Wodniok said.

U.S. gross domestic product expansion in 2015 will probably accelerate to 3.2 percent, the fastest pace in 10 years, from 2.4 percent last year, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. An index compiled by the University of Michigan showed consumer confidence in the country at an 11-year high in January. Volvo owns the Mack truck brand in the U.S.

German carmaker Daimler AG said today that global orders at its truck division, the world’s biggest manufacturer of the vehicles, surged 45 percent in the quarter.