Toyota is once again world\'s most valuable automotive brand

Toyota is once again the world\'s most valuable automotive brand, reclaiming the spot from last year\'s top brand, BMW, according to the 2013 BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Brands Study released by market research firm Millward Brown.

Although automotive sales reportedly improved in some regions, they remained below pre-recession levels in others, impacting the overall brand values of car companies adversely. In contrast, Toyota\'s global sales in 2012 increased by 22.6% to 9.75 million units, which contributed to the company\'s brand valuation in this year\'s report, rising by 12% to $24.5 billion, making it one of the biggest movers in the automotive sector.

According to BrandZ, in the eight years since the report was first published in 2006, Toyota has been crowned as the automotive sector\'s brand value leader six times, and as the second most valuable brand on two separate occasions.

Here are the automotive companies that made it to the list:

1. Toyota (23rd)

2. BMW (24th)

3. Mercedes-Benz (43rd)

4. Honda (71st)

5. Nissan (86th)

6. Volkswagen (100th)