Tobacco

Cigarettes were in decline in Western Europe in 2022, but sales of next-generation products were increasing – with this expected to continue in the coming years. Disposable vapes recorded dynamic growth in the UK, the region’s biggest e-vapour…

In 2023, the retail value sales of cigarettes in Austria continued their downward trajectory, dropping below pre-COVID-19 volume sales levels of 2019. During the pandemic, cigarette consumption had seen a temporary boost due to increased consumption…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes continued to decline in 2022. This was partly due to progressive increases in excise duties, which affected the affordability of traditional tobacco products. Consequently, some consumers opted to travel to…

Retail volumes sales of cigarettes in Denmark continued to see a double-digit decline in 2023. This performance fits with a general downward trajectory in the smoking prevalence for cigarettes in the market, as taxation, health and wellness trends…

Volume sales of cigarettes in Finland continued to decline in 2023. Finns are very aware of the harmful impact of smoking, especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and there is a clear polarisation taking place between those who smoke and…

Cigarettes saw volume sales decline in France in 2023. Legal sales of cigarettes were forced to take another backseat in 2023. Having seen no tax increase in 2022 (the immediate post-pandemic period), taxes rose again in 2023, which resulted in a…

During the pandemic, cigarette consumption benefitted from remote working as well as high levels of stress among the local population. Moreover, consumers were not able to cross borders during the lockdowns to buy their cigarettes in neighbouring…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes rose, but only very marginally, in 2022. Following over a decade of strong retail volume sales decline, the category is starting to show signs of stabilisation. However, the competition with heated tobacco remained…

Cigarette sales in Ireland registered significant volume declines in 2022, as a result of a return to pre-pandemic levels of international travel, which saw cross-border and duty-free sales increase once more. This trend, which has been seen across…

Cigarettes saw a slightly stronger volume decline in 2022 than witnessed in 2021, as the era of the COVID-19 pandemic has come to an end and consumers have returned to their out-of-home lifestyles. This decline is to be expected, as the circumstances…

In 2022, the retail volume sales of cigarettes experienced a decline in Norway as a result of the reopening of borders and the resumption of cross-border trade, particularly with Sweden. The popularity of tobacco products in cross-border trade and…

Although smoking prevalence continued to decline in Portugal, despite the gradual shift to non-combustible products, retail volume and current value sales increased in 2022. The recovery of tourism in the aftermath of the pandemic supported a rebound…

Cigarettes saw positive growth in retail volume terms in 2022, with sales being driven by an increase in tourism, the return of cross-border purchases and an increase in out-of-home activities and social events. Nonetheless, despite these growth…

Sweden’s smoking population is extremely low by European and indeed global standards, with numbers continuing to decline in 2022 as consumers transition away from cigarettes. This translated into another year of decline for cigarettes, at least in…

The long-term trend of declining volume sales of cigarettes continued in 2022, with consumers increasingly aware of the levels of harmful chemicals in tobacco smoke. Cigarettes posted negative performances in both retail volume and current value…

Some smokers have been switching to cheaper brands of cigarettes in order to reduce their expenditure on these products. This was being driven by the reduction in purchasing power as a result of the high inflation rates being seen in the Netherlands,…

In 2021, cigarettes recorded positive volume growth for the first time since 2009, mainly due to travel restrictions, with consumers being unable to purchase cigarettes in duty free or via illicit trade, driving sales towards taxable UK channels,…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes in Turkey declined sharply in 2022. The contraction was mainly due to spiralling inflation fuelled by the depreciation of the lira, the global recovery from the pandemic and the fallout of Russia’s invasion of…

The pandemic caused notable behavioural change in most consumers, with government regulations contributing to disparate affects on the channel distribution, brand success and overall growth of cigarette markets across Western Europe. Rising taxation,…

Volume sales of cigars and cigarillos continued to decrease in Austria in 2023, but at a significantly slower rate than cigarettes. Demand for these products experienced a strong push during the pandemic, and volume sales for both cigars and…

Smoking tobacco volume sales decreased substantially in 2022. One reason this was an increase in unit prices, due to the rise in excise duties on smoking tobacco. This negatively affected both domestic sales of smoking tobacco, with many consumers…

Overall, retail volume sales of cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Denmark continued to see a double-digit decline in 2023. The demand for these types of tobacco products remained negatively affected as they tend to have an older consumer…

The market for cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Finland showed a mixed performance in 2023. On a positive note, cigars managed to maintain the broadly positive growth trend which had been in evidence since the start of the pandemic. The…

Cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco saw volumes continue to fall in France in 2023. By comparison with other categories, fine cut tobacco was spared during the COVID-19 years due to the fact that it was subject to lower taxation than cigarettes.…

Fine cut tobacco volume sales recorded positive growth in 2022 following the decline seen in 2021, with actual volume sales in 2022 remaining above their pre-pandemic level, helped by the strong growth seen in 2020. The continued prevalence of remote…

In line with most tobacco manufacturers in Greece, players in the category de-invested from traditional tobacco products and shifted their focus to new generation options, namely e-vapour products and heated tobacco. These new generation products are…

Increasing cross-border tobacco sales, competition from illicit trade, another tax increase that further reduced the price gap between economy cigarettes and fine cut tobacco, and the emergence of closed system single use products negatively impacted…

While volume sales of cigars and cigarillos combined decreased slightly in 2022, demand for cigars remains at a stable level. Demand for cigars was not strongly affected by the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, nor did it take a notable…

Resuming cross-border trade in Sweden led to a decline in domestic sales of tobacco products in Norway in 2022, following a spike in sales during the COVID-19 years of 2020-2021. Norwegians have a preference for purchasing tobacco products in Sweden…

The increase in tobacco taxes in 2022, combined with inflation-fuelled price rises, led to double-digit current value growth in cigarillos. However, with lower prices compared to cigarettes, cigarillos have become a more popular option for consumers…

Fine cut tobacco registered solid growth in retail volume terms in 2022, while cigars, cigarillos and pipe tobacco all registered a decline. Several factors can explain the positive performance of the category. Firstly, manufacturers have managed to…

Following several years of volume decline, cigar and cigarillos saw a very marginal increase in retail volume sales in 2022. Border trade is typical in tobacco products within the Nordic region, and the return of Norwegian buyers in Sweden supported…

Sales of both cigars and cigarillos recorded solid retail volume growth in 2022. Many smokers consider cigar smoking as an occasional indulgence rather than a daily necessity, and are less likely to try to quit smoking or to reduce their consumption…

One of the leading factors contributing to decline in sales of smoking tobacco over the last two years was that the excise tax increased in 2021. The government in the Netherlands is now increasing the excise on smoking tobacco at the same time as it…

The growth seen in fine cut tobacco in recent years came to a halt in 2022, with the category recording a double-digit volume sales decline. As in cigarettes, this decline was being driven by UK consumers returning to travelling abroad and purchasing…

Fine cut tobacco was by far the most dynamic performer within cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Turkey in volume sales terms in 2022, recording a triple-digit growth rate. Because these products are significantly cheaper and more economical…

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.…

In the upcoming years, consumers and businesses face an array of challenges, with income inequality, mass migration and rising uncertainty about another crisis being among the major ones. Nevertheless, within this lie untapped opportunities. This…

Slower growth, surging inflation, rising geopolitical risks and an accelerating deglobalisation trend are factors shaping the global economic, financial and trade landscape in 2022 and beyond. Despite the challenges, there are opportunities for…

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…

As in 2022, smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in Denmark did not see uniform retail volume sales developments at the end of the review period. In this vein, retail volume sales of chewing tobacco and e-vapour products continued…

In 2022, next-generation products were gaining a bigger share in the tobacco market. Heated tobacco in particular was growing in significance in the overall German tobacco market. Philip Morris’ Iqos brand has firmly established itself in the heated…

New generation tobacco products, e-vapour and heated tobacco (nicotine pouches were not available in Greece), remained under the spotlight of development and key growth drivers for tobacco, both in terms of retail value and volume sales. They…

Closed-system single-use vapes continued to be the highest-performing e-vapour product in this category in current retail value terms in 2022, thanks to widespread availability through a range of retail channels and local consumers, particularly…

In 2022, disposable vapes and nicotine pouches were the two stand out products in the smokeless category. The migration from the Swedish-style snus to nicotine pouches continued in 2022. Snus is already a well-known product in Sweden and a popular…

Heated tobacco products saw strong growth in 2023, solidifying their position as the most established nicotine source next to cigarette smoking in Austria. Consumers widely perceive these products as less harmful than cigarettes, making them a…

In 2022, heated tobacco products maintained a strong performance, as more smokers adopted these as an alternative to cigarettes. Price promotions on devices, notably the entry-level compact device Iqos Iluma One by Philip Morris, contributed to…