China's growth rate might be slowing, but its army of middle class consumers in only getting bigger.
And savvier.
The convergence of these two phenomena—growth slowing and consumer sophistication rising — could signal the emergence of a new era for Chinese corporate giants, according to a recent report by Milward Brown Optimor and WPP Brandz.
This new report ranks the 50 most valuable Chinese brands according their proprietary calculation.
We took a look at the top 10.
10. Sinopec
Brand value:
US $12.5 Billion
Headquartered in:
Beijing
Industry:
Oil and Gas
Year formed:
2000
Sinopec, primarily a petroleum refiner and producer of petrochemical products, signed deals worth $10 billion during 2012 in an effort to diversify, build overseas revenue and reduce dependency on imported oil. The company acquired a 49% stake in Canada's Talisman Energy and after completing the purchase of Canada's Daylight Energy, Sinopec formed Sinopec Daylight Energy to explore oil and gas fields of western Canada.
Source: Milward Brown Optimor and WPP Brandz
9. Kweichow Moutai
Brand value:
US $13.0 Billion
Headquartered in:
Renhuai
Industry:
Baijiu
Year formed:
1951
Moutai produces baijiu, the very popular local sorghum-based liquor that's been produced in China for more than 2,000 years. Moutai hasn't just been benefit ting from China's booming market for liquor, its overseas sales grew almost 80% in 2012. Though the liquor was previously not well known abroad, it's slowly gaining popularity outside of China.
Source: Milward Brown Optimor and WPP Brandz
8. Bank of China
Brand value:
US $13.6 Billion
Headquartered in:
Beijing
Industry:
Financial Institution
Year formed:
1912
The bank that served as China's central bank till 1949, Bank of China has been focusing on global expansion and trading. In 2012, it became the first Chinese bank in Poland and Sweden, and has received a license to open a branch in Kenya. The bank also opened a trading headquarters in Shanghai, where it hopes to become the global center, in anticipation of the city becoming the global center for trading yuan.
Source: Milward Brown Optimor and WPP Brandz
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