NEW YORK — Despite being hammered by Japan's earthquake in March and devastating quality-control and safety-related issues in 2010, Toyota is still the top automotive brand in the world, according to Interbrand's 2011 Best Global Brands report.
It is the second major global brand leadership award this year for Toyota, which in May edged BMW as the top automotive brand in the annual BrandZ Top 100 study by advertising giant WPP's research subsidiary Millward Brown.
In the latest Interbrands report, Nissan returned to the prestigious Best Global Brands list for the first time since 2007 and was praised for its resiliency during the natural disaster.
"Nissan was able to restock inventories faster than its competitors immediately following the earthquake that devastated Japan last March," said Interbrands in a statement. "In doing so, Nissan proved to be resilient during a difficult time for both the company and its home country — and managed to increase its brand value as a result."
Nissan took the No. 90 spot on the list of the Top 100 global brands.
Toyota was praised by Interbrand for forging ahead by "focusing on safety and quality, modifying its leadership structure and capitalizing on its world-renowned green efforts," despite facing an "internal crisis" and an "external crisis."
Mercedes-Benz was named the top premium automaker in the list, followed by BMW.
Ford took the No. 50 spot in the list of the Top 100 global brands.
Hyundai took the No. 61 spot, beating out Ferrari, which came in at No. 72.
Coca-Cola was the No. 1 brand for the 12th consecutive year.
toyota_bdg_ns_100711_717.jpg (32.79 KiB) [ Viewed 15174 times ]
toyota_bdg_ns_100711_717.jpg [ 32.79 KiB | Viewed 15174 times ]