ID :
183961
Tue, 05/24/2011 - 05:29
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/183961
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Sales of foreign tobaccos plunge on price hikes
SEOUL (Yonhap) - Major foreign cigarette makers saw their sales in South Korea drop sharply this month following recent hikes in the prices of their major brands, industry data showed Tuesday.
According to the data offered by the nation's leading convenience chain Family Mart and industry officials, British American Tobacco (BAT) Korea sold 1.39 million packs of cigarettes between May 9-15, down from 1.92 million packs between April 11-17.
BAT known for popular brands such as Dunhill, Kent and Vogue raised its product prices by 200 won (US$0.18) on April 28, about an 8 percent price increase.
Japan Tobacco International (JTI) Korea also saw its cigarette sales fall from 879,062 packs to 715,165 packs over the cited period, the data showed. The company, maker of Mild Seven, also hiked its product prices by 200 won on May 4.
While foreign companies are losing ground after hiking prices, other rivals are basking in sales growth apparently thanks to their relatively cheaper prices.
South Korea's tobacco giant KT&G saw its sales jump 9.9 percent to 4.32 million packs and sales of Philip Morris' products also grew 16.7 percent to 2.37 million packs, the data showed.
"Consumers seem to be affected by the recent price hikes of cigarettes in choosing what they smoke and that trend can be seen clearly in those sales figures," an industry official said.
According to the data offered by the nation's leading convenience chain Family Mart and industry officials, British American Tobacco (BAT) Korea sold 1.39 million packs of cigarettes between May 9-15, down from 1.92 million packs between April 11-17.
BAT known for popular brands such as Dunhill, Kent and Vogue raised its product prices by 200 won (US$0.18) on April 28, about an 8 percent price increase.
Japan Tobacco International (JTI) Korea also saw its cigarette sales fall from 879,062 packs to 715,165 packs over the cited period, the data showed. The company, maker of Mild Seven, also hiked its product prices by 200 won on May 4.
While foreign companies are losing ground after hiking prices, other rivals are basking in sales growth apparently thanks to their relatively cheaper prices.
South Korea's tobacco giant KT&G saw its sales jump 9.9 percent to 4.32 million packs and sales of Philip Morris' products also grew 16.7 percent to 2.37 million packs, the data showed.
"Consumers seem to be affected by the recent price hikes of cigarettes in choosing what they smoke and that trend can be seen clearly in those sales figures," an industry official said.
