A new ranking of the world’s most valuable brands for the first time includes two Chinese companies in the top 10: Tencent, which entered the top 10 last year, and now Alibaba too.
Alibaba (BABA) is China’s answer to Amazon, offering services ranging from e-commerce to cloud computing. It enters the top 10 after a whopping 92% increase in value over the last year. Tencent (TCEHY) is a major player in apps, messaging and online gaming. Both are big in payment services.
The ranking in question is the “Brandz Top 100,” produced annually by the advertising and public relations giant WPP and its market research arm, Kantar. Most of this year’s top 10 are tech firms—in order, it’s occupied by Google, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Tencent, Facebook, Visa, McDonald’s, Alibaba and AT&T.
What’s more, while the full list of 100 companies only included one Chinese firm back in 2006—China Mobile—it now has 14. The top 10 of those companies grew in value by 47% over the last year, a rate that’s more than double of that enjoyed by the big U.S. brands.
The brands with the most dramatic year-on-year increase in value are again led by a Chinese company—the e-commerce firm JD.com (JD), which is also getting into financial services, and which comes in at number 59 after a 94% value jump. Then came Alibaba, followed by Chinese booze outfit Moutai, which saw its value rise by 89%.
“Attitudes are changing, particularly among younger consumers who are falling in love with Chinese brands,” BrandZ chief Doreen Wang told CNN. “While penetration into US markets may still be at a preliminary stage for both brands, other regions are embracing them.”
