PETRONAS retains position as most valuable brand in MY due to commitment to society

Malaysian pride and joy PETRONAS has been voted ASEAN’s most valuable brand for the 13th year. In spite of its US$0.8 billion loss in brand value, brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance’s Global 500 report states that PETRONAS also retained its AAA brand strength rating since 2019. Globally, brand values of leading tech and Oil and Gas (O&G) brands have taken a hit this year as seen in Brand Finance's Global 500 report. Brand Finance’s research showed that some key reasons for the downtick in performance included negative industry-wide forecasts in the next three to five years as oil and fossil fuel prices are expected to stabilise as well as a rise in harsh customer evaluation in a post-pandemic world. 

Alex Haigh, managing director of Brand Finance APAC said that PETRONAS’ commitment to giving back to society and its recent move to embrace renewable energy are allowing the brand to pivot to the future. “These are important as Malaysia’s overall economy and the O&G industry in particular are going through a volatile period. Brands would do well to take note of this shift to more sustainable business practices,” he added.

Within ASEAN, six brands made this year’s ranking namely, PETRONAS, DBS (up 21% to US$10.5 billion), Viettel (up 2% to US$8.9billion), PTT (up 20% to US$6.6billion), UOB (up 13% to US$5.5 billion) and OCBC (up 13% to US$5.4billion).

Globally, Amazon takes the cake as the most valuable brand. Like PETRONAS, Amazon also faced a fall in brand value and brand strength. It faced a 15% fall in value from US$350.3 billion to US$299.3billion, and its rating falling from AAA+ to AAA due to a harsher consumer evaluation in the post-pandemic world. According to Brand Finance, Amazon’s customer service perception also took a hit. With longer delivery times, consumer dissatisfaction has risen, leading to consumers being less likely to recommend Amazon to others. Concurrent with the easing of pandemic restrictions, people are returning to shopping in-person, slightly mitigating the need for online retail.

Following closely behind Amazon is Apple, whose brand value fell by US$57.6billion, placing it as the world’s second most valuable brand. The dip in brand value can be attributed to the fall in forecast revenue as a disrupted goods supply chain and a constrained labour market are expected to limit supply of its marquee hardware products.

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Brand Finance also launched its first-ever Brand Finance Sustainability Perceptions Index report, in association with the International Advertising Association, at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The report reveals that major global brands such as Amazon, Tesla, Apple and Google each have billions of dollars contingent on managing a reputation for commitment to sustainability. With such examples of shifting business practices, it is evident that tech brands are finding it difficult to keep up. David Haigh, chairman and CEO of Brand Finance concurs. He said that technology brands across the world have lost significant value in response to shifting demand patterns. “

Inflation has affected brands across many sectors, but as consumer habits partially revert to pre-pandemic patterns, demand for the services of tech brands has been hit particularly hard. Additionally, disrupted supply chains, labour shortages and greater obstacles to financing have left their mark,” he added.

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