Apple’s net profit jumped 10.7 per cent on an annual basis in its 2023 fiscal fourth quarter, despite a yearly drop in total sales. Bloomberg
Apple’s net profit jumped 10.7 per cent on an annual basis in its 2023 fiscal fourth quarter, despite a yearly drop in total sales. Bloomberg
Apple’s net profit jumped 10.7 per cent on an annual basis in its 2023 fiscal fourth quarter, despite a yearly drop in total sales. Bloomberg
Apple’s net profit jumped 10.7 per cent on an annual basis in its 2023 fiscal fourth quarter, despite a yearly drop in total sales. Bloomberg

Aramco and Adnoc ranked region’s most valuable brands with Apple the world’s top


Alkesh Sharma
  • English
  • Arabic

Apple has surpassed Amazon to claim the title of the world's most valuable brand, worth $516.6 billion, while Middle Eastern oil and gas majors Saudi Aramco and Adnoc maintained their positions as the leading brands in the region, a report has found.

Apple achieved a 74 per cent yearly increase in brand value, even as its prime product iPhone’s volume share has largely plateaued, the report by consultancy Brand Finance said.

However, its strategy of finding new markets, expanding its ecosystem and encouraging upgrades to higher-value iPhones has been highly effective, as has the company's expansion into new product lines.

During Brand Finance’s research, more than 50 per cent of respondents recognised Apple as expensive but worth the cost, reinforcing its ability to demand a premium price.

“Apple has grown its brand value through strategic diversification and premiumisation, moving away from heavy reliance on iPhone sales towards ... wearables and services such as Apple TV subscriptions,” said David Haigh, chairman and chief executive of Brand Finance.

The company, based in Cupertino, California, was followed by Microsoft ($340.4 billion), Google ($333.4 billion), Amazon ($308.9 billion) and Samsung ($99.4 billion).

Brand Finance assesses the strength of global brands, quantifies their value and rates them annually across sectors and countries.

Last year, e-commerce giant Amazon topped the world ranking with a $299.3 billion brand value.

The world’s biggest oil-producing company, Saudi Aramco, which experienced an almost 8 per cent annual drop in brand value to $41.6 billion this year, retained its title of the most valuable brand in the Middle East, the London-based consultancy revealed.

Aramco is consistently acquiring assets around the world to strengthen its portfolio and expand into new markets.

Last month, it acquired a 40 per cent equity stake in Gas & Oil Pakistan to enter the South Asian country’s fuel retail market. It also completed its acquisition of Valvoline's global products business for $2.65 billion last year.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, the second most valuable Middle Eastern brand, has grown its brand value by 7 per cent on a yearly basis to $15.2 billion.

Adnoc's brand strength has improved due to its commitment to decarbonisation, the report said.

The company is one of the 50 founding signatories of the Oil and Gas Decarbonisation Charter that is a global commitment to speed up climate action across the industry, launched at Cop28 last year.

Globally, among all brands, Adnoc climbed 10 places to 128th from last year's 138th.

“We are witnessing several brands from a wide array of sectors on the cusp of breaking into the top 500,” Mr Haigh said.

Amid an expansion push in the region, "many brands are making the step up from being strong regional players to becoming brands with global aspirations".

Saudi Telecom Company, the kingdom’s biggest mobile operator, climbed 10 spots to reach 149th position in the global ranking. Its brand value jumped nearly 12 per cent to $13.9 billion. It makes STC the first consumer brand in the Middle East to enter the 150 most valuable brands globally.

STC, which acquired a 9.9 per cent stake in Spain's Telefonica for 8.5 billion Saudi riyals ($2.27 billion) in September, has made “significant strides” in its expansion strategy, integrating specialised subsidiaries in its digital infrastructure, the report said.

Meanwhile, etisalat by e&, the UAE's biggest telecoms operator, increased its brand value by 12 per cent to $11.7 billion.

Riding on the wave of the artificial intelligence sector boom, US chip maker Nvidia became the world’s fastest growing brand. Its brand value surged 163 per cent to $44.5 billion and the company improved its ranking from 117 last year to 30.

Texas-headquartered electric vehicle maker Tesla (brand value down 12 per cent to $58.3 billion) has dropped out of the top 10, falling to 18th place. The company has been affected by its large exposure to the Chinese EV market that has seen a sharp rise in many home-grown brands such as BYD (brand value up 20 per cent to $12.1 billion).

Tesla’s close association with billionaire businessman Elon Musk, “a controversial leadership figure, creates added reputational risk for the brand”, the Brand Finance report said.

Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest

Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.

Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.

Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.

Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.

Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.

Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia

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Know your Camel lingo

The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home

Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless

Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers

Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s

Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival

Match info

Liverpool 3
Hoedt (10' og), Matip (21'), Salah (45 3')

Southampton 0

THE BIO

Bio Box

Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul

Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader

Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Favorite food: seafood

Favorite place to travel: Lebanon

Favorite movie: Braveheart

Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMaly%20Tech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mo%20Ibrahim%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%20International%20Financial%20Centre%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%241.6%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2015%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%2C%20planning%20first%20seed%20round%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20GCC-based%20angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

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The more serious side of specialty coffee

While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.

The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.

Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”

One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.

Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms. 

The biog

Occupation: Key marker and auto electrician

Hometown: Ghazala, Syria

Date of arrival in Abu Dhabi: May 15, 1978

Family: 11 siblings, a wife, three sons and one daughter

Favourite place in UAE: Abu Dhabi

Favourite hobby: I like to do a mix of things, like listening to poetry for example.

Favourite Syrian artist: Sabah Fakhri, a tenor from Aleppo

Favourite food: fresh fish

Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh590,000

'Panga'

Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari

Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta

Rating: 3.5/5

Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

Updated: January 17, 2024, 4:57 AM