Tobacco

While cigarettes were recording a second year of positive growth in 2022, boosted by further normalisation post-pandemic, enabling a fuller return of mobility, inbound tourists and social lives, there was a mixed picture in the newer alternatives to…

Asia Pacific continues to be the largest cigarette market in the world. The region’s cigarette consumption experienced a decline caused by the impact of COVID-19 leaving consumers to reduce their consumption of cigarettes or shift to illegal trade.…

There was some volume growth of cigarettes in Azerbaijan in 2023. While the government has imposed policies to reduced prevalence, including increasing excise taxes, banning advertising and imposing restriction on smoking in public places, smoking…

Cigarettes are subject to strict regulations in China, and there is stable supply, setting it apart from other consumer goods. In 2022, cigarettes demonstrated stable retail current value growth in China, which was largely attributed to effective…

In 2022, retail volume sales of cigarettes remained fairly stagnant, seeing only a minor increase, with sales limited by the fact that smoking prevalence in Hong Kong has decreased over the years thanks to a series of tobacco control initiatives. The…

With mobility returning to pre-COVID levels, the frequency of consumption occasions has increased. This has led to the fastest volume growth in a decade, primarily driven by India's sizable population of working individuals. As of 2022, according to…

On 1 January 2022, the Indonesian government through the Finance Ministry announced an increase in the excise tax on cigarettes as part of efforts to curb consumption, especially among the country’s children and young consumers. The average increase…

In 2022, cigarettes continued to record a decline in retail volume sales. However, the decline was the smallest in recent years, thanks to the end of tax increases. The government conducted a reform of the tobacco tax scheme from 2018 to 2022, to…

In 2022, there was a significant fall in volume sales. Authorities in Kazakhstan have been implementing tough anti-tobacco policies and these are bearing fruit, with smoking prevalence falling in 2022. A further rise in excise duty was another…

Overall, economy and premium cigarettes gained retail volume share at the expense of mid-priced brands in 2022. The main reason for this trend was derived from high inflation, which drove high living costs and informed expenditure on cigarettes. Many…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes decreased in 2022. In general, demand dropped due to higher taxes, as well as customer migration amongst traditional smokers, to other products, but also cheaper cigarettes brands. Meanwhile, many young consumers of…

The extension of smoking prohibited areas was implemented on 1 July 2022 to incorporate new premises. Smoking at reservoirs, selected public parks, and gardens was last revised in June 2016 in an effort to protect non-smokers who visit these areas…

In 2022, cigarettes saw a slight retail volume decline in South Korea. However, the decline was much more moderate compared with pre-COVID 19 years. The domestic market absorbed a great share of duty-free cigarettes. While borders reopened in 2022,…

The Taiwanese authorities continue to be active in discouraging the usage of tobacco products via both health campaigns and enforceable restrictions that limit consumers’ smoking occasions. Moreover, under new laws the legal smoking age will be…

The cigarette market in Thailand has seen a significant decline in recent years due to increasing health concerns, government regulations, and higher taxes on tobacco products. The Thai Government has implemented several policies to reduce tobacco…

In spite of the efforts of incumbent players to put forward cost containment measures in order to retain prices as much as possible, 2022 proved to be a challenging year for cigarette industry players. With the higher excise taxes in 2022, cigarette…

Following a period of decline, retail volume sales of cigarettes showed a more positive trend in 2022. This was supported in part by a rise in the Uzbek population as well as a rise in immigrants from Russia. The war in Ukraine led to the…

The end of the COVID-19 era and the removal of associated restrictions led to a boost in cigarettes sales in 2022. Vietnamese consumers have re-embraced their out-of-home lifestyles and social activities, which has ultimately led to higher incidences…

Overall, cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco registered healthy volume growth in 2023 in Azerbaijan. That being said, in terms of cigars, value sales were still low, Cigars appeal to a niche consumer base and are considered expensive by the…

The cigars category is still at a nascent stage in China, given the relatively low penetration rate. However, in 2022 cigars witnessed robust growth in retail volume terms, in particular driven by domestically produced hand-rolled cigars, thanks to…

In 2022, retail volume sales of cigars continued to fall due to supply and logistics issues, particularly for Cuban cigars. The shortages had a significant impact on the category as a whole, as the Hong Kong market heavily depends on Cuban cigars.…

Manufacturers express deep dissatisfaction with the current taxation of cigars and cigarillos, which equates them to cigarettes. Manufacturers argue that these products are considered luxuries and are less addictive, with most consumers not inhaling…

The market for cigars and cigarillos remains fairly small in Indonesia, with the potential consumer base remaining somewhat limited. This is especially true for imported cigars which are sold at high prices which are generally only affordable to…

Cigarillos recorded dynamic retail volume growth from 2016 to 2020. However, the boost to sales ended in 2021, with the category turning to decline. In 2022, an exceptional decline was seen, with retail volume sales falling to half the 2021 level.…

Cigars and cigarillos registered a healthy increase in volume sales in 2022 and benefitted from people socialising again, as society was fully opened up, post pandemic lockdowns. Though cigarillos are much more popular in Kazakhstan than cigars, the…

Having experienced a drop in retail volume and current value sales in 2020, in the wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, cigars and cigarillos saw a return to growth in 2021. The rebound in retail volume and current value growth continued in…

Considered a luxury and leisure item, cigars are smoked by customers who are affluent, and the category is niche in Pakistan. Moreover, retail volume sales of cigarillos, pipe tobacco and fine cut tobacco remained negligible in 2022. Although, the…

In April 2022, all nightlife-related businesses in Singapore were permitted to fully reopen, including bars, pubs, discotheques, and nightclubs. During the Circuit Breaker period in April and May 2021, all on-trade establishments were forced to close…

In 2022, cigars and cigarillos in South Korea saw significant growth. Increased consumer interest in cigars since the pandemic was the main factor supporting growth. According to local keyword search statistics from Naver, consumer searches for…

Cigars and cigarillos have achieved steady growth as consumers increasingly choose to consume more sophisticated products. While cigarillos face lower taxes than cigarettes, they are the same price as cigarettes making them an attractive option to…

Thailand's cigar and cigarillos market is relatively small and dominated by imported cigars, with a limited number of local manufacturers. Cigars and cigarillos are perceived to be premium products by Thai consumers and as such are mainly only…

With the easing of COVID-19 related restrictions in 2022, the disrupted supply of imported cigars that was seen in 2020 and 2021 was less of an issue at the end of the review period. The niche market of cigars and cigarillos and the efforts of…

Cigars and cigarillos are considered niche products in Uzbekistan as they are not as widely consumed as regular cigarettes. They are typically sought out by those seeking luxurious and prestigious items, with many purchased as gifts or for special…

Cigars continued to register a strong performance in 2022, with double digit volume growth. However, cigars remain relatively niche and attributed to higher-income consumers such as businessmen and executives, due to their expensive prices. Moreso,…

The briefing introduces the Cities Households Necessities Spending Index. The index ranks 1,075 cities by household expenditure on non-discretionary items, namely food, housing, and clothing and footwear. This analysis focuses on 160 major cities.…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. Global inflation is reaching a peak, although geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market remain key risks. The impact varies between countries, with…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries in Q4 2023 and 2024. Global inflation is moderating, although divergence remains among the key economies. Higher volatility in the energy markets and disruption of…

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered the most severe global recession since World War II. In Q4 2020, the end of the pandemic started as countries began administering effective vaccines among the population; however, vaccine distribution…

This report considers what socialising will look like in a post-COVID-19 era, focusing on several key questions. A return to the “Roaring Twenties” in the beverages space or a continuing decimation of the on-trade? How has socialising changed (eg…

E-vapour products in China was devasted by a substantial package of industry regulations and policy updates throughout 2022, restricting the production, wholesale, and retail operations of e-cigarette players. The ban on flavoured e-vapour products,…

With the passing of the RA 11900 or the Vape Law in 2022, there is a stricter regulatory environment regarding the manufacturing and importation, as well distribution and sales, of e-vapour products and heated tobacco. These categories registered…

Smokeless tobacco had a negligible presence in Indonesia in 2022, with a limited number of sellers selling these products, with sales mainly limited to retail e-commerce. Nonetheless, Tigersnus, a Swedish-style snus, has been produced in Indonesia…

In 2022, heated tobacco continued to grow strongly despite a tax increase in October 2022. Heated tobacco had been classified as pipe tobacco for the tax category, and the tax had been determined by converting 1g of product weight into one stick of…

Heated tobacco products saw very strong, if slower, retail current growth and positive retail volume growth in 2022. The competitive price of heated tobacco when compared with cigarettes afforded the category good growth potential. In addition, wider…

The market for reduced risk products (RRPs), including e-cigarettes, heat-not-burn tobacco products (heated tobacco products) and vaping products was populated with imports at the end of the review period. With the rise in import taxes, the category…

The Indian government took measures to prohibit direct and indirect advertising of tobacco products, including smokeless tobacco, following its ratification of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) and the…

E-vapour products made a strong rebound in 2022 following the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Supply issues were common in 2020 leading to shortages and, consequently, price rises. This led to consumers searching for cheaper options.…

Heated tobacco products experienced another year of current value and volume growth in 2022. Smokers who were not ready to quit smoking, but were sensitive to the smell of cigarette smoke, chose heated tobacco products, looking for an option they…

Retail current value sales of smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco remain negligible in Uzbekistan.

Overall, it was a positive picture for smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in Azerbaijan in 2023. In terms of e-vaping products, closed system single use registered significant value and volume growth, with Chinese brands…