Interbrand announces Best China Brands 2018

• Tencent and Alibaba continue their momentum and expand the lead in brand value

Interbrand, the world’s largest and most influential brand consultancy, has announced its Best China Brands ranking for 2018. Best China Brands is the most authoritative brand ranking and study of its kind, capturing timely market and brand trends. The report lists the value of brands originating in China and has become China’s compass for brand growth in all sectors, as well as an important lens through which brands can examine their own value.For the fourth year consecutively, Tencent and Alibaba continue their fast growth in brand value, extending their lead through double-digit increases in brand value. Tencent’s 32% growth in brand value has it placed as the fastest growing brand in this year’s ranking with Alibaba close behind at 27%.

Nikki Lin, Interbrand’s Managing Director of Greater China, commenting on the year’s key trends and transformations, says, “One of the most remarkable trends is that the top performing technology brands are continuing to aid the development of other sectors. Multiple brands are cooperating with the leading technology players to further elevate their offerings in an effort to better serve their target consumers and better equip themselves for the future.”

Significant increases in brand value are observed in Moutai (20%) and Midea (21%) due to their increasing globalisation, while a significant portion of the top brands list is also made up of both banking and insurance brands in the financial sector. GAC Motor also makes its debut at #47 with a brand value of CNY 2,869m. Established in 2008, the motor company has grown to over 16,000 employees and now aggressively plans to expand into other markets, including the United States.

The total value for the 2018 table increases to CNY 1,768,409m, indicating a 12.5% overall rise from last year’s value. In total, 16 brands on the list showed double-digit growth.Interbrand pioneered brand valuation in 1988 and introduced the first brand valuation methodology to be certified by ISO 10668. In keeping with global best practices, the methodology behind the ranking of China’s 50 most valuable brands relies on financial information independently audited by third parties, as well as extensive consumer and market data. The report is based on financial information as of the end of 2017 and calculates the brand value based on the brand’s future contribution to business profits. 

In 2017, Interbrand included Sri Lanka in its global Best Brands listing of the world’s top country brands. The valuations are overlooked by Mike Rocha, Global Director, Brand Valuation, in Interbrand London. All country brand valuations use the same rigorous and transparent methodology as Interbrand Best Global Brands, the most prestigious brand ranking table globally and the definitive guide to the world’s 100 most valuable brands.