Asia Pacific

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…

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.…

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…

Now in its seventh edition, this report explores the top digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this edition touch on topics such as second-hand shopping, community group buying,…

On 30 April 2022, the sale of alternative smoking products came to an end in Hong Kong. The legislation prohibited the import, promotion, manufacturing, sale, or possession of any kind of alternative smoking product, including e-vapour products and…

E-vapour and heated tobacco products remains an underdeveloped category in Vietnam, however, this is expected to develop further over the forecast period. During 2022, the Vietnamese government and associated authorities, especially the Ministry of…

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…

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 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…

With social mobility returning to pre-COVID-19 levels post-pandemic, cigarettes have experienced the fastest volume growth in a decade, mainly fuelled by increased consumption occasions. The working population, including 316 million Millennials and a…

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…

Technological advances in 2024 will continue to reshape consumer behaviour. This annual report explores the top five digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this report’s edition…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Overall, it was a positive picture for tobacco in Azerbaijan in 2023, with only marginal volume decline.

In 2023, the inflation rate in Bangladesh is very high, causing a significant increase in essential commodity prices over the past year. Despite this, tobacco sales have improved, primarily due to the widespread availability of single-stick sales,…

In 2023, cigarette consumption in Cambodia has seen a gradual decline. This trend is driven by several factors such as a notable increase in e-cigarette use, particularly among younger consumers, the recent implementation of a VAT on cigarettes, and…

In 2023, retail volume sales of cigarettes in China maintained negligible growth. Cigarettes in China is strictly regulated by The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA). In recent years, cigarette production remained relatively stable. With…

Cigarettes in Japan continued to decline in retail volume terms in 2023, marking the 11th consecutive year of decline. Cigarettes is still the largest tobacco category in Japan, accounting for over half of value sales; however, the decreasing…

Compared with cigarettes, cigars is still a niche category in China, with a relatively low penetration rate. This is primarily because the compact and convenient nature of cigarettes aligns better with consumers’ busy lifestyles and work rhythms.…

Following an exceptional decline in 2022, which saw volume sales fall by half from 2021, cigarillos saw another significant drop in sales in 2023. Compared with 2020, which was the peak of volume sales, sales in 2023 were close to a quarter.

In 2023, e-vapour products in China witnessed an exceptional decline in retail current value sales, marking the lowest level of sales since 2014. This was due to the enforcement of “requirements of the Measures for the Administration of E-cigarettes”…

Heated tobacco in Japan continued to see double-digit growth in retail volume terms in 2023. Heated tobacco is regarded by consumers as a relatively lower harm option compared with cigarettes, and the weaker smell of these products compared with…

Tobacco in China saw a fairly stable performance in 2023, with volume sales increasing marginally across all categories except e-vapour products. Cigarettes continued to see slow increases in both retail volume and current value sales, driven by…

Sales of tobacco in Japan remained fairy stable in retail current value terms in 2023. The Japanese government reclassified COVID-19 in May 2023, moving it from a level two to level five infectious disease. The new level is the same class as seasonal…

Tobacco in Singapore saw a retail volume decline in 2023, although current value sales increased. Retail volume sales of cigarettes continued to decrease, with mid-priced cigarettes suffering the most significant fall in sales. Meanwhile, the economy…

Retail volume and current value sales of cigarettes declined in 2023, maintaining the trend seen in 2022. Nevertheless, cigarettes still constitute a large proportion of sales in the overall tobacco industry. Whilst cigarettes experienced a negative…

Cigars and cigarillos in Singapore saw a retail volume decline in 2023. However, this followed a huge spike in sales in 2022. The dynamic volume growth in 2022 was due to increased footfall to Singapore’s casinos, due to heightened restrictions in…

Cigars and cigarillos in South Korea has shown significant increases in retail volume sales for four consecutive years, with double-digit growth seen in 2023. One of the main drivers behind the growth in consumption of cigars and cigarillos is a…

In 2023, heated tobacco products in South Korea maintained double-digit retail volume and current value growth. The competition for the top spots in heated tobacco is intensifying. KT&G, Philip Morris Korea, and Rothmans Far East (BAT) are all…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products, and heated tobacco are banned in Singapore. Under the Control of Sale of Tobacco Products in Singapore, the sale, usage, and promotion of tobacco alternative products such as e-vapour products and heated tobacco…

Tobacco in Singapore saw a retail volume decline in 2023, although current value sales increased. Retail volume sales of cigarettes continued to decrease, with mid-priced cigarettes suffering the most significant fall in sales. Meanwhile, the economy…

In 2023, overall retail current value sales of tobacco in South Korea showed a positive growth rate compared with the previous year, yet the growth rate was minimal, resulting in no significant difference in actual sales compared with 2022.

The market for cigarettes in Thailand exhibited a decline in volume terms in 2023, albeit at a slower rate than in 2022. Besides the impact of ongoing economic uncertainty, performance continued to be negatively affected by the impact of excise tax…

Cigarette sales in the Philippines continued to see deep declines in both volume and current value terms in 2023, in a trend that is accelerating in 2024 as manufacturers struggle to generate domestic demand through retail. Beyond the inflationary…

In 2023, cigarettes continued to record positive total volume growth in Vietnam despite the economy encountering difficulties during the year. Smoking has become deeply ingrained in the daily routines and habits of many people in Vietnam. Even in the…

The market for cigars , cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Thailand experienced healthy growth in current value terms throughout 2023, with all three segments seeing a significant increase in sales. In the case of cigars and cigarillos, this was due…

In 2023 in the Philippines, cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco was spared the hindrances that beset cigarettes, benefitting from its products’ positioning as niche and appealing to a loyal consumer audience. Cigars Local consumers who gravitate…

In 2023, cigars witnessed slower growth in total volume sales in Vietnam than in the previous year. The market has become more mature, with the target consumer group of cigars being limited mostly to affluent consumers. Despite the deceleration in…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in the Philippines benefited from regulatory efforts in 2023. Thanks to the proliferation of legislation that oversees production and sale of vapour products, e-vapour products and heated…

The tobacco industry in Thailand registered a stagnant performance in 2023, in both volume and current value terms. At the same time, the number of smokers in the population fell for the second consecutive year, having risen during the pandemic. This…

Tobacco in the Philippines saw overall growth fall in both volume and current value terms in 2023, driven in large part the persistent downfall of cigarettes, which continued to decline while cigars and cigarillos enjoyed stable demand within a niche…

In 2023, tobacco continued to record a positive performance in Vietnam despite the fact that the country experienced challenging economic conditions and considerable inflationary pressure. Many Vietnamese consumers maintained their habit of smoking…

The decline of cigarettes sales in Taiwan accelerated in volume terms over 2023 due to several factors, including the expansion of non-smoking areas, the increase in smoking age, and increased penalties to business owners, stakeholders and end users.…

According to government data, the import of cigars and cigarillos during 2019 to 2023 increased significantly with 184% growth in volume. The growth of year-to-year got eased in 2023 as the traveling resumed since the fourth quarter 2022.…

Retail volume sales of smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco plummeted in 2023, following the total ban of e-vapour products in Taiwan. However, heated tobacco products made strong progress from a low base. E-vapour products had…