Malaysia Is Top Nation Brand for Q2 2011, According to Study

Malaysia has dislodged perennial favorite Singapore from the top spot in an international ranking of how countries are viewed around the world.

Singapore fell to sixth place in the 2011 Q2 nation branding perception study conducted by East West Communications, a Washington-based consultancy that provides services to help nations improve their images abroad. East West has been releasing quarterly and yearly perception indexes of 200 countries and major territories since 2008.

This is the first time the Southeast Asian city-state has not finished ahead of the rest of the pack since the quarterly and yearly indexes began.

East West Communications cited “concerns over the country’s economic growth and the apparent growing disparity between the country’s rich and poor” as the reasons for Singapore dropping five places.

Rankings are based on the mentions a country receives in the media. Malaysia’s score was boosted by a number of positive events, mostly related to sports: the Malaysia Grand Prix, the Malaysia Open and gold medals at the Putrajaya Waterski Cup.

Malaysia was followed by Canada, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Ireland. France, India, Hong Kong and South Africa all placed in the top 10.