Cigarettes

Retail volume sales of cigarettes in the UK declined by double digits in 2023, even though smoking prevalence experienced a limited drop. The main reason behind the highest decline in legal cigarette sales in the last decade was the significant unit…

Retail volume sales of cigarettes in Greece posted a decline in 2023, following the sluggish performance of the previous year. This occurred within the context of rising levels of health awareness in the country, which had a negative impact on…

In 2023, retail volume sales of cigarettes declined marginally in Sweden. The Swedish government’s strategy to reduce the smoking rate has been successful with smoking prevalence steadily falling to a record low of 5.5% in 2023, which is extremely…

Despite the positive impact from sales to tourists, this was not enough to prevent cigarettes from declining in in retail volume terms in 2023. The difficult economic context, high inflation and relevant price increases on cigarettes due to tax…

Sales of cigarettes continued their downward trend in Belgium throughout 2023. This decline can be attributed to several factors. The Belgian government significantly increased excise duties on cigarettes in 2023, leading to higher prices that…

Cigarettes saw another year of retail volume decline in 2023, with the smoking prevalence continuing to fall in the Netherlands, and the number of young people starting to smoke also decreasing. With the regulatory environment becoming ever stricter…

Volume sales of cigarettes continued to decline in Norway in 2023. Smoking prevalence dropped in 2023 compared to 2022 with more people quitting smoking or switching to smokeless tobacco such as snus. The government is making concerted efforts to…

Cigarettes experienced significant value growth in Spain in 2023. The increase in value sales was driven by inflation and an increase in unit prices. However, even though value sales increased, volume sales registered a decline, largely due to the…

In 2023, the Irish cigarette market continued to decline, with volume sales dropping fast. Many factors contributed to this double-digit decline – the high cost of living and rising tobacco product taxes are two of the main causes. Ireland is…

Cigarettes in Italy continued to decline in volume terms in 2023, as the number of cigarette smokers diminish. At the same time, the rising tax on cigarettes is pushing up prices, supporting value sales but also acting as a deterrent to cigarette…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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,…

Almost uniquely among fmcg industries, tobacco legislation is not simply a guiding element or a means of enforcing consumer standards but a central determining factor in the performance of tobacco markets. As the cumulative de-normalising impact of…