Samsung ranks 6th in global brand value

Samsung Electronics was ranked sixth among 100 global corporate brands in terms of their value, according to a consulting firm Thursday. 

The brand value of South Korea’s tech giant was estimated at $61.1 billion this year, increasing from $59.9 billion last year, according to the list of 100 Best Global Brands announced by US-based Interbrand.

Its brand value surged 250 percent from $17.5 billion in 2009.

Samsung first entered the list of top 10 brands in 2012, and has been rising steadily since then.

It took three years for it to surpass the $60 billion mark since exceeding $50 billion in 2016. 

The US agency rated the Korean company’s innovation efforts high, taking as examples the launch of Galaxy Fold, lifestyle TV Sero and customization-focused Bespoke refrigerator, while considering its growth potential in the fields of 5G, artificial intelligence, internet of things and automotive components.

“While maintaining its top position with technological leadership in the memory chip market, Samsung is offering consistent levels of brand experience for customers,” the consultancy said.

Samsung’s archrival Apple topped the list with a brand value of $234 billion, followed by Google ($168 billion), Amazon ($125 billion) and Microsoft ($109 billion).

The other Korean firms who made it to the list included Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors.

Hyundai came in 36th place with $14.2 billion in brand value, growing 5 percent from $13.5 billion last year. Among global automakers, it was ranked sixth.

The Korean carmaker entered the top 100 list in 2005 and has kept rising for the past 15 years. During the period, its brand value rose $10 billion in total and the ranking climbed 48 notches.

“The company’s aggressive efforts to invest in hydrogen economy such as the fuel cell electric vehicle 2030 vision and future mobility business were highly evaluated,” said a Hyundai official.

Kia was ranked 78 with $6.4 billion. Its value decreased 7 percent from a year earlier.

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)