THE Brand Finance Global 500, released an annual study conducted by leading brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance. The world’s biggest brands are put to the test and evaluated to determine which are the most powerful

and most valuable.Ferrari is the world’s most powerful brand for the sec-ond consecutive year. The Italian carmaker scores highly on a wide variety of measures on Brand Finance’s Brand Strength Index, from desirabil-ity, loyalty and consumer sentiment to visual identity, online presence and employee satis-faction. Ferrari is one of only eleven brands (including Google, Hermès, Coca-Cola, Dis-ney, Rolex and F1 racing rivals Red Bull) to be awarded an AAA+ brand rating and has the highest overall score.Brand Finance Chief Executive David Haigh stated, “The prancing horse on a yellow badge is instantly recognizable the world over, even where paved roads have yet to reach. In its home country and among its many admirers worldwide Ferrari inspires more than just brand loyalty, more of a cultish,

even quasi-religious devotion, its brand power is indisputable.”Though Ferrari is the world’s most powerful brand, being a niche, luxury brand with an of-ficially capped production, it is perhaps unsur-prising that it is some way off being the world’s most valuable. Its US$4 billion brand value puts it 350th in brand value terms. David Haigh con-tinues, “Apple also has a powerful brand, rated AAA by Brand Finance. However what sets it apart is its ability to monetize that brand. For example, though tablets were in use before the iPad, it was the application of the Apple brand to the concept that captured the public imagination and allowed it to take off as a commercial reality.” This is just one of the factors responsible for its US$105 billion brand value; it is the world’s most valuable brand for the third year in a row.

After enjoying its best ever year in 2012, the company decided to reduce the number of cars sold to maintain a high level of exclusivity and increase their val-ue over time. There were reduced sales in 2013, but record turnover, profits and finances.While the number of homologated cars deliv-ered dropped to 6,922 cars (-5.4 per cent) in 2013, revenues rose by 5 per cent, eventually reaching 2.3 billion Euro. End-of-year trad-ing profits reached a record 363.5 million euro (+8.3 per cent). Ferrari also delivered net profits in excess of 246 million euro (+5.4 per cent).Brand-related businesses (Retail, Licensing and E-commerce) also yielded very good results and from this year onwards will be managed by a separate company, 100% owned by Ferrari and based in Maranello. Overall, operating margin in that area was up by 3.6 per cent to 54 million euro.

FREEVOL. 2 ISSUE 19 SUPPLEMENT MAR 6, 2014- MAR 12, 2014WWW.SF-POST.COM

Ferrari named world’s most powerful brand

Mini shows Clubman concept heading for GenevaMINI is about to unveil the next-generation Club-man ‘utility vehicle’ in concept form at the Ge-neva auto show. The new car is based on the new third-generation Mini Cooper. It has also grown from the current Clubman, by quite a lot:

26 cm in length and 17 cm in width. The look follows the styling of the current generation, with hexagonal radiator grille, elliptical headlights and taillights. Mini points out the Berry Red as an ideal combina-tion for the new metallic

gray roof color. The bum-per is finished in black chrome. The Clubman continues with spilt rear doors.The interior gets the new layout as on the Coo-per hatchback. Nubuck leather, patent leather, and nappa leather are avail-

able for the interior trim. The dash is covered in leather, with blue limed ash grain serving as ac-cents. The central binna-cle now houses a display for navigation, driving and secondary functions such as entertainment.

Ferrari

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The third model in Jaguar’s ultra-high performance R-S range, the XFR-S Sportbrake joins its XFR-S saloon sib-ling in the exclusive 300km/h club and is a vivid expres-sion of Jaguar’s longstanding and legendary sports saloon lineage. The XFR-S Sportbrake incorporates engineering features from both the XKR-S and the all-new F-TYPE two-seater sports car to create the most driver-focused, ag-ile and responsive iteration of Jaguar’s award-winning XF model range. The XFR-S Sportbrake’s R-S powertrain, chassis and body enhancements enable the car to push the perfor-mance boundaries. Electrifying performance is provided by the 5.0-litre su-percharged V8 petrol engine, which now boasts 550PS and 680Nm - up 40PS and 55Nm respectively over its XFR in-stallation. The increases have been achieved through revi-sions to the engine management system and optimisation

of the flow of air both into and out of the engine. Fitted with an eight-speed transmission incorporating Jaguar’s ‘Quickshift’ technology, the increase in engine output allows the XFR-S Sportbrake to accelerate to 60mph in 4.6 seconds and on to an electronically limited top speed of 186mph. In order to manage the extra rear mass of the XFR-S Sportbrake while retaining the sharp turn-in and re-sponse of the XFR-S Saloon, the Sportbrake’s rear suspension has been modified with revisions to both rear spring rates and the adaptive damper tune. These revisions work together to increase the feeling of con-nectivity with the road surface, allowing for confidence-inspiring handling and a supple, controlled ride. Re-calibrated active electronic differential and Dynamic Stability Control settings have been tuned to work with the XFR-S Sportbrake’s modified rear suspension to al- low the enthusiastic driver to make the most of the car’s

huge potential.

Jaguar introduces its first high performance estate car

Mexico racing to be carmaker to USMexico is on track to become the United States’ No1 source of imported cars by the end of next year, overtaking Japan and Canada in a manu-facturing boom that’s turning the car industry into a bigger source of dollars than money sent home by migrants. The boom is raising hopes Mexico can create enough new jobs to pull millions out of pov-erty as northbound migration slows sharply. But critics caution most of the new car jobs are low-skill and pay too little. Mexico’s low and stag-nant wages have kept the poverty rate between 40 per cent and 50 per cent since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement two decades ago. A US$800 million ($968 million) Honda plant that opened this week in the state of Guanajuato will produce more than 200,000 Fit hatchbacks and compact SUVs a year, helping push total Mexican car exports to the US to 1.7 million this year, about 200,000 more than Japan, IHS Automotive consultants say. Another big plant starting next week will take Mexico past Canada for the top spot by the end of 2015.“It’s a safe bet Mexico is now one of the major global players in car manufacturing,” said Eduardo Solis, presi-dent of the Mexican Automotive Industry Association. When NAFTA was signed in 1993, Mexico produced 6 per cent of the cars built in North America. It now pro-vides 19 per cent. Total Mexican car production has risen 39 per cent from 2007 to nearly 3 million cars a year. The total value of Mexico’s car exports surged from US$40 billion to US$70.6 billion over that span. Manufacturing in Mexico is now cheaper than in many places in China, though the vast majority of the cars and trucks made in North America are still produced in the US for domestic consumption and export to other coun-tries. Many of the vehicles built in Mexico are assembled with parts that are produced in the US and Canada and cross the border without tariffs under NAFTA. Mexico’s Government and the industry say the auto sec-tor is now Mexico’s primary source of foreign currency, surpassing oil exports and remittances from expatriates.Migration to the US has slowed dramatically in recent years, though experts attribute that mostly to tougher en-forcement and a slower US economy. Despite successes such as the car-making boom, Mexico still isn’t creating nearly enough formal jobs for the hundreds of thousands of people entering the workforce each year. Mexico has about 580,000 autoworkers, whose numbers have risen by 100,000 since 2008. They are paid about US$16 a day, more than US$4 less than the average US

autoworker is paid every hour. More than half of all Mex-ican workers earn less than US$15 a day, according to Mexico’s census agency. Many car factories in Mexico operate with pro-company unions and some workers have fought without success to form independent unions that could bargain for higher pay and better pensions. “It’s one of the most m o d e r n i n d u s -tries that is gen-e r a t i n g the most m o n e y for the c o u n -try,” said Huber to J u a r e z , an auto industry expert at the Au-tonomous U n i v e r -sity of P u e b l a . “It’s not right that t h e s e worke r s are mak-ing so little.” Solis, the presi-dent of the auto industry associa-tion, ac-k n o w l -e d g e s w a g e s are low compared to the US and Can-

ada, but says the boom is creating a new genera-tion of young engineers and funding automo-tive research in Mexico. A handful of Mexican entrepreneurs have launched boutique car companies in recent years, although their production remains insig-nificant compared to that of foreign manufacturers in Mexico. “It’s not only about lower salaries ... . It’s a component of a larger equation that

has to do with the expertise we’re developing,” Solis said. Much of the new production is by Japanese companies drawn by the ability to move parts in and out of Mexico without tariffs. Local gov-ernments have competed for new plants with tax exemptions, employee training and better highways to the US border and ports.

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