Cigars & Cigarettes Industries Overview: Key Trends and Strategies

Global Tobacco Industry

In the world tobacco industry, cigarettes represent the leading market segment with revenue exceeding $681 billion, which accounts for almost 95% of the overall market. The yearly rate of market growth is expected to accelerate to be 4.5% until 2015, bringing the market to almost $890 billion.

The tobacco market involves the retail of tobacco, cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos and chewing tobacco. There are currently around 1.3 billion smokers in the world; this figure is expected to climb at a rate of almost 4% per year. Tobacco is grown in over 120 countries worldwide, using close to 4 million hectares of total agricultural land available globally. Around 12 million cigarettes are smoked every minute around the world. 

Around 35% of men in developed nations smoke, compared with 50% of men in developing nations. About 22% of women smoke in developed nations, compared with less than 10% in developing nations.

Tobacco Key Market Products

Cigarettes represent the largest share of the tobacco market in sales volume and value. Though consumption levels have fallen, the absolute number of smokers has been climbing along with the global population and disposable incomes, reports Global Industry Analysts. China is the largest regional market for cigarettes.

Cigars do not generate the same sales or sell in the same high volume of cigarettes. In a more recent trend, the social cachet attached to cigars has been boosting sales. As consumers become more health conscious, they are opting for cigars for their lower level of harm to health. Cigarillos, which are cigars that way less than three grams, represent the market segments recording the most rapid growth. In the past, cigars have been much less marketed than cigarettes, associated with a different demographic (that of the older male), and have not been paid much promotional attention by companies. Advertising of cigars is on the rise, along with aromatic filter varieties, which appeal more to younger and female demographics, and there are increasing numbers of tobacco-only stores in operation.

Tobacco Industry Leaders

The three leading companies in the global tobacco market are Philip Morris International, China National Tobacco Corporation and Japan Tobacco. Philip Morris International is the world’s largest tobacco company, which sells its products in 180 countries, and held a 16% stake in the international market outside of the US. Excluding China, the company holds almost 28% of the global market.

Tobacco Market Outlook

As tobacco consumption in developed countries declines due to health awareness, tobacco companies are concentrating more on developing countries, including Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East. The industry is focusing its efforts on advertising strategies such as offering low-risk products and re-launching existing products to attract female consumers. More recent product offerings include cigarettes flavored with mint, citrus, and vanilla, and low-risk products with reduced toxins and carcinogens or free of nicotine.

The global tobacco industry continues to struggle with negative publicity due to health concerns, high taxes, and state regulations. Once seen as a social pass time, smoking is now perceived as anti-social and damaging to health, causing premature deaths and lung cancer. Companies are now required to include health warnings on their product labels and are no longer allowed to undertake marketing campaigns.

Leading Tobacco Industry Associations

• Tobacco Merchants Association 
• International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association 
• Swiss Cigarette 
• Tobacconists Association of America 
• European Smoking Tobacco Association