FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Automaker Daimler AG has extended the contract of its chief executive, Dieter Zetsche, giving him at least three more years to narrow the sales and profitability gap between the company’s Mercedes luxury brand and competitors Audi and BMW.

Zetsche, whose contract was due to run out in December, also heads Mercedes, Daimler’s earnings mainstay where profit margins have recently fallen short.