LONDON - China's nation brand value increased by 40.4 percent to $19.5 trillion from 2018 to 2019, according to a report released Thursday on the annual study of national brands.

China continued to grow at a very healthy rate despite trade tensions with the United States, said the "Nation Brands 2019" report by Brand Finance, a London-based brand consultancy.

Defying the expectations of a slowdown, China's brand value has benefited from the glowing success of some of its most dominant and valuable brands, including ICBC, Huawei and Alibaba, said the report.

Huawei and Alibaba, in particular, embraced strong marketing strategies adopted by their international counterparts.

China has come closer to the long-standing leader -- the United States, which recorded a brand value growth of only 7 percent over the past year.

The difference in value between the two nations' brands has dropped from $12 trillion in 2018 to just over $8 trillion in 2019, said the report.

The report showed that the average year-on-year nation brand value growth of the developing economies was 13.9 percent, compared with mere 0.4 percent for the developed economies.

"With general stagnation in Europe and North America, nations from the Middle East and Africa have claimed 11 out of the top 20 spots for brand value growth this year," said David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance.

Although the United States retained its position as the leader among the world's 100 most valuable nation brands, second-ranked China is nevertheless narrowing the gap, as it continues to grow against all odds, said Haigh.