Saudi-based oil and gas giant Aramco has once again been crowned the Middle East’s most valuable brand, with a brand value of $43.6 billion – a 16 percent year-on-year increase.
Saudi Aramco topped the regional list in the latest Brand Finance Global 500 ranking.
Following a difficult period for the sector at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, oil prices rebounded in 2021, buoyed by the natural gas crisis that saw businesses turn to crude products.
The increase in demand saw Aramco’s third-quarter profits more than triple year-on-year, helping push its market valuation to $2 trillion.
In a sign of confidence and ambition for continued growth, Aramco announced plans to increase its production capacity from 12 million barrels a day to 13 million by 2027. The company has continued to invest heavily in its brand to support growth in both core and growth businesses through a global campaign as well as investments in sports – from Formula 1 to golf.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), achieved a 19 percent brand value growth to $12.8 billion, the fastest among the top 10 oil and gas brands globally, which saw it hold on to its position as the second most valuable brand in the region.
Following an increase of its national reserves by 4 billion barrels of oil and 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, ADNOC announced an increase of $5 billion to its capital expenditure to $127 billion, and plans to boost its upstream production and downstream portfolio.
However, with an eye on the future, and in line with the UAE leadership’s 2050 net zero strategy, ADNOC is also continuing its commitment to energy transition. In addition to a joint venture with TAQA and Mubadala focusing on renewable energy, it also announced plans to build a blue ammonia project.
Etisalat was named the region’s strongest brand for the second consecutive year with a score of 89.2 out of 100 and a corresponding AAA rating.
Expo 2020 has offered Etisalat the platform to demonstrate itself as a strategic enabler of the UAE’s digital transformation. This opportunity assisted in increasing its BSI score by +1.8 points, breaking into the top 20 strongest brands globally, claiming 18th place, as well as making it the strongest telecoms brand globally.
Etisalat, which was also named the most valuable telecoms brand portfolio in the Middle East, saw its brand value increase from $8.5 billion to $10.1 billion, pushing it into the top 200 of the Brand Finance Global 500 ranking this year.
A fellow telecoms brand, Saudi-based stc continued to see good growth this year, with its brand value increasing by 16 percent to $10.6 billion. This year it announced it would be investing $400 million to build the region’s largest cloud-enabled data centre, and saw its subsidiary STC Pay awarded one of the first digital banking licences in Saudi Arabia.
Globally, Apple retained the title of the world’s most valuable brand following a 35 percent increase to $355.1 billion – the highest brand value ever recorded in the Brand Finance Global 500 ranking.
Apple had a stellar 2021, highlighted by its achievement at the start of 2022 – being the first company to reach a US$3 trillion market valuation.
The iPhone still accounts for around half of the brand’s sales but Apple is giving more attention to its other suite of products with a new generation of iPads, an overhaul to the iMac, and introduction of AirTags.
Amazon and Google also saw good levels of growth, both keeping their spots in the Brand Finance Global 500 ranking behind Apple in second and third respectively.
Amazon joined Apple in crossing the $300 billion brand value mark with a 38 percent increase to $350.3 billion, navigating global supply chain issues and a labour shortage in the process.
Since June 2021, it has hired 133,00 new employees and recently announced plans to hire a further 125,000 hourly workers in anticipation of continued growth.
Google saw a similar brand value growth of 38 percent to $263.4 billion.
Tripling in brand value over the past year, TikTok was the world’s fastest-growing brand. With an astounding 215 percent growth, the entertainment app’s brand value has increased from $18.7 billion in 2021 to $59 billion this year.
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