The 2008 Country Brand Index shows that Australia is the number one country brand in the world for the third year running, followed by Canada, which rose from sixth place last year, and the United States in third.
The index looks at how countries are branded and identifies global trends in travel and tourism.
It also splits countries out in to categories such as the best country brand for shopping, families, safety or doing business.
It is based on research conducted by FutureBrand and the PR agency Weber Shandwick among 2,700 business and leisure travellers from nine countries.
Rene A Mack, president, Weber Shandwick's travel and lifestyle global practice, said: "With the current state of the world -- economic turmoil, political unrest and global warming -- it's always fascinating to see which countries come out on top in branding themselves, generating global recognition and fuelling the travel and tourism industry."
In contrast with research published by Opodo recently, the CBI found that China, the United Arab Emirates and Croatia are the three destinations likely to go massive in the next five years.
Opodo's research, based on bookings for 2009 cited Lima, Amman and Cairo as the newest hotspots.
2008 CBI Top Country Brands
- Australia
- Canada
- United States
- Italy
- Switzerland
- France
- New Zealand
- United Kingdom
- Japan
- Sweden