Emirates airline is the region’s most valuable brand and it continues to soar with a brand value growth of 17 per cent, taking its total to over $7.7 billion, according to leading brand valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia continue to dominate the list of top 50 brands from the Middle East featured in the Brand Finance Middle East 50. The two countries contribute 16 and 21 of the brands, respectively to the list.

Qatar has the third most significant presence on the table with eight brands. Qatar Airways continues to lead the way, with a brand value of $3.5 billion. It is growing faster than Emirates, with year-on-year growth of 26 per cent, though it remains a long way off rivalling the Emirati brand for brand strength and international renown, Brand Finance said.

Emirates continues to invest in ventures that enhance its brand. In mid-2015, Emirates spent $20 million to secure ‘Friends’ star Jennifer Aniston in an advertising campaign, which appears to have translated into improving brand strength, it said.

The scores for metrics such as preference, satisfaction and recommendation have all improved this year but those most closely tied to advertising, familiarity and consideration, have improved the most.

Qatari brands as a group are growing faster than those from any other country in the Middle East. The average year-on-year growth rate for brands globally is 6 per cent. In the Middle East, it is an impressive 11 per cent. However, Qatari brands have an exceptional growth rate of 21 per cent, it said.

Brand Finance CEO David Haigh said: “The exceptional growth of Qatari brands reflects both the major strides the nation has made in developing a broader-based economy and the level of investment and expertise applied to its brands. We expect to see a continuation of this trend as Qatar rivals the UAE and Saudi Arabia for dominance in the Middle East’s brand landscape.”

In 2015, there were six Kuwaiti brands in the table. This year, there are only four, though Kuwait’s most valuable brand, NBK, continues to grow strongly. This trend suggests that while the countries of the Middle East outside the GCC have much more significant economic issues to address before their brands can thrive, smaller GCC nations (Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain) should take steps to encourage brand investment, monitoring and management, it said.
 
The Middle East’s top 10 brands, according to the list, are: Emirates, STC (Saudi Arabia), Etisalat (UAE), Qatar Airways (Qatar), QNB (Qatar), Al-Rajhi Bank (Saudi Arabia), Almarai (Saudi Arabia), NCB (Saudi Arabia), Emirates NBD (UAE) and Ooredoo (Qatar). - TradeArabia News Service