Tech Companies Rule in Global Brand Rankings

Fashion and energy CEOs, however, should beware. It appears that a slowdown in the Chinese economy has diminished the value of luxury clothing and oil brands.

Apple has retained its top spot in New York-based consultancy Interbrand’s annual assessment, growing the value of its brand by 5% in the past year to around $178 million.

Google has again come in at number two, with its brand value growing by 11% to around $133 million, while Coca-Cola rounds out the top three with a brand worth around $73 million.

The consultancy rates brands by combing three factors: the financial performance of a company’s products and services, the role brands play in influencing customer choice and the ability of the brand to command a premium price.

“Technology brands are expanding further into people’s lives—and deepening their roots,” said Johnny Trinh, technology director at Interbrand.

“As internal product innovation slows down for some, we’ve seen a large shift in the landscape, with brands developing a reliance on developer communities, active followers and acquisitions to grow their offerings.”

Facebook was the fastest-growing brand on the list, jumping in value by 48% in the past year to take the 16th position. Electric car company Tesla Motors was a notable new addition, taking the 100th spot.

Shell, meanwhile, was the only energy company to make the top 100, coming in at 92nd place, and its brand value had tumbled by 17% in a year to around $4.6 million.

Oil companies are currently weathering a sharp drop in profits owing to tumbling oil prices, sent lower by a global supply glut in economic slowdown in China, the world’s biggest energy consumer. Sales of luxury products have also come under pressure in China since the government moved to stymie corruption by cracking down on gift-giving by officials.

Luxury fashion brands Ralph Lauren and Prada were also among some of the biggest decliners in this year’s survey, although retail brands more broadly were the fastest-growing sector, led by companies such as Amazon, eBay and Ikea.