Apple becomes world's biggest brand

Apple has become the world’s most valuable brand after surpassing Google who has held the top spot for the last four years.

(All values are in $US unless otherwise stated)

The annual BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands study found the Apple brand has increased in value by 859 per cent since 2006 and is worth $153.3 billion, a sum equivalent to $AU144 billion.

The calculation was carried out by researcher Millward Brown Optimor to identify and rank the world's most valuable 100 brands by dollar value, an analysis based on financial data combined with consumer measures.

The joint value of all the brands in the top 100 has increased by 17 per cent and is now worth $2.4 trillion.

This year 19 of the 100 brands originate in BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) economies, a huge improvement from 2006 when only two brands slotted into this category.

Millward Brown chief executive Eileen Campbell said Apple had been able to charge higher prices and weather tough economic times by constantly innovating.

"Compared with an overall enhancement of 13 percent in the world's equity markets during 2010, the best brands increased their value 30 percent faster," she said.

Facebook was a newcomer to the top 100 and had a 246% increase in value to $1.91 billion and no. 35 on the list. Chinese search engine Baidu was the second-fastest grower, leapfrogging dozens of older brands with a 141% increase to land at No. 29 on the list at $22.6 billion.

Eight of the top ten brands on the list are U.S. based however China now has 12 brands in the top 100, an increase of three since last year.

Online shopping brand Amazon edged out Walmart as the most-valuable retail brand, rising 37% in value to $37.6 billion as Walmart dropped 5% to $37.3 billion. This finding suggests a rise in online buying.

Bouncing back from a tough year of battling widespread recalls and reports of quality problems, Toyota's brand value rose 11% to $24.1 billion last year, putting it back atop automotive brands.

BP, hit hard by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, took a 27% drop in value. Experts say they may not bounce back as quickly as Toyota. BP faces problems of confidence in its employees and efficiency.

Growth of tablets and smartphones led to big gains in brand value for a lot of tech and telecom brands, which occupied the top three spots and six of the top 10. All but one of those, No. 2 Google, gained brand value year over year. Google slipped 2% despite the success of its Droid operating system.

Blackberry’s brand value dropped a staggering 20%. The once-dominant smartphone brand suffered due to not as much new product news as competitors.

Wells Fargo led a number of brands whose fortunes rebounded from the financial crisis and recession of 2008 and 2009. Its brand value nearly doubled, up 97% to $36.9 billion, or No. 16. Wells Fargo expanded their brand very well and bought naming rights for the old Wachovia Centre in Philadelphia.

Fast-food brand McDonalds increased its value by 23% to $81 billion and no. 4 on the list. This is due to consumers turning away from pricier food chains.

Coke led beverage brands, up 8% to $73.8 billion, beating Budweiser, staying even at $15.9 billion and Pepsi, up 1% to $12.9 billion.