ASIAN companies have put little effort into brand building, despite evidence that a good brand can be worth billions to the bottom line.
A global survey of international brands identified 60 that were worth more than US$1 billion, with Coca-Cola topping the table at US$83 billion.
However, Asian brands were conspicuously absent from the list, with only three Japanese brands making it into the league table.
The Interbrand survey found that Asian companies were still failing to recognise the potential value of their brands.
'Asian consumers love brands, but Asian companies have never really appreciated what branding can do for the business,' said Kim Faulkner, managing director of Interbrand Singapore.
Japanese companies were the only ones in Asia that had successfully marketed their brands. Sony ranked 18th, Toyota was 20th and Honda came in 24th in the global rankings.
