China ranks 2nd in global trade in services brand value: report

China ranks second globally with 21 brands in the world's 100 most valuable trade in services brands, with a combined worth of 876.8 billion U.S. dollars, a British consultancy report showed Wednesday.

The ranking, titled Trade in Services 100 2026, was released by Brand Finance, a leading brand valuation consultancy, as the 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services got underway in Beijing.

The world's 100 most valuable trade in services brands are worth 4.6 trillion U.S. dollars in 2026, the report said, adding that Chinese brands accounted for 19.08 percent, trailing only the United States.

China's trade in services maintained steady growth in the first seven months of 2026, as the export of travel and transport services drove more than half of the overall export expansion, commerce ministry data showed.

The country's services trade totaled nearly 4.45 trillion yuan (about 655.8 billion U.S. dollars) during the period, up 8.3 percent year on year, the data showed.

Digital platforms, financial networks, professional services and travel brands are transforming intangible capabilities into cross-border value, the report noted. "Trade in services is one of the principal mechanisms through which intangible assets are converted into economic value across borders," it said.

Alex Haigh, managing director of Brand Finance Asia Pacific, said by leveraging the synergies of digital platforms, communications networks and large financial institutions, Chinese trade in services brands are rising rapidly, reflecting a new trend of extending "Made in China" to "China services" and "China brands."

China has intensified policy efforts to boost service sector development. The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) and this year's government work report both made specific arrangements for this sector.

In April, the State Council issued a guideline on advancing the expansion and quality upgrading of the sector. According to the guideline, China aims to make marked progress in high-quality service sector development by 2030, with the total scale of the sector exceeding 100 trillion yuan by then, while more competitive and influential "China services" brands will be cultivated. ■