Malaysia was placed 7th for Best Country Brand for Value for Money in a global study conducted by FutureBrand, a leading global brand consultancy, in conjunction with public relations firm Weber Shandwick’s Global Travel & Lifestyle Practice.

The report, Country Brand Index (CBI) 2008, also mentioned Malaysia as an example of a country brand that used a regional message to position itself in the global marketplace and set itself apart from other comparable countries in the region. The “Malaysia Truly Asia” tagline was cited as helping Malaysia gain equity in markets inundated with comparable countries.

The CBI study examines how countries are branded and ranked according to key criteria, and identifies emerging global trends in the world’s fastest growing economic sector – travel and tourism, which accounts for US$5.9 trillion of economic activity worldwide this year and more than 238 million jobs.

CBI, now in its fourth year, is a comprehensive study of approximately 2,700 international business and leisure travelers from nine countries, including the US, UK, China, Australia, Japan, Brazil, UAE, Germany and Russia.

This year’s index includes rankings and trends as well as travel motivations, challenges and opportunities within the worlds of travel, tourism and country branding.

To read the report, go to http://www.countrybrandindex.com.

For other media releases by Tourism Malaysia, please log on to www.tourism.gov.my.

Issued by: Communications & Publicity Division, Tourism Malaysia
Date: 2 December 2008
Tel: +603 2615 8188; Fax: +603 2615 8299
For more information, e-mail: anisramli@tourism.gov.my or
log on to: www.tourismmalaysia.gov.my