STOCKHOLM, July 24 (Reuters) - World number two truck maker Volvo posted a smaller than expected fall in second-quarter earnings and a healthy rise in orders as demand firmed across nearly all its main markets.
The company said operating earnings fell to 3.26 billion Swedish crowns ($505 million) from a year-ago 7.71 billion, topping a mean forecast of 2.47 billion seen in a Reuters poll of analysts.
Volvo, the dominant global player in the industry alongside Germany's Daimler, maintained its outlook for its main truck markets and said a gradual improvement in registered sales was expected. ($1 = 6.4531 Swedish crowns) (Reporting by Niklas Pollard and Helena Soderpalm)