Category: News This Week

A team of researchers at the National Taiwan University in Taipei are currently perfecting—if that is the right word—a device that could inform doctors and dentists whether and when their patients have been eating, drinking and smoking, according to a story by Adam Clark Estes in Gizmodo.

Mouths make unique motions depending on whether they are being used to eat, drink, smoke or talk, and the team’s Bluetooth-ready fake tooth records these motions.

In a study with eight participants, the tooth recorded their mouth activities with 94 percent accuracy.

The prototype was connected to a computer and power source with a small wire leading out of the mouth, but the final version will be Bluetooth-enabled and battery-powered.

British American Tobacco’s cigarette volume during the six months to the end of June, at 332 billion, was down by 3.4 percent on that of the six months to the end of June 2012.

Volume was increased in the company’s Asia Pacific region by 5.5 percent to 100 billion, but it was down in its other three regions: in the Americas by 9.4 percent to 64 billion; in Western Europe by 8.3 percent to 57 billion; and in the EEMEA (Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa) by 4.5 percent to 111 billion.

The company’s four global drive brands outperformed the totality of its offering. Dunhill’s volume increased by 6 percent, with growth in Indonesia, Chile, South Africa and South Korea partially offset by declines in the GCC and Brazil, mainly as a result of the one-off impacts in the comparator period.

Kent maintained market share despite lower volume of 3 percent due to industry declines in Russia and Romania, partially offset by growth in other Eastern European markets.

Lucky Strike’s volume was down by 7 percent, mainly driven by the market contraction in Spain and instability in the Middle East, partially offset by higher volumes in Germany, France, Philippines, Poland and Argentina.

And Pall Mall’s volume rose by 8 percent, with strong growth in Pakistan, Chile, Romania, Canada and Mexico partially offset by lower volumes in Russia and Spain.

Total tobacco volume, which includes other tobacco products converted as cigarette equivalents, was down by 3.1 percent to 346 billion.

Fine-cut volume grew by 6.7 percent to 10 billion cigarette equivalents in Western Europe, mainly in Spain, Italy, Poland, Belgium and France. And Pall Mall was said to have remained “by far the biggest brand in Western Europe in this category.”

BAT’s revenue during the six months to the end of June, at £7,572 million, was up by 2 percent on that of the six months to the end of June 2012.

Adjusted profit from operations was up by 4 percent to £2,944 million; profit from operations was up by 3 percent to £2,807 million; adjusted diluted earnings per share were up by 8 percent to 109.1p; and basic earnings per share were up by 9 percent to 106.6p.

“We performed well during the first half of the year with strong pricing momentum, increased market share and continued growth in our global drive brands, strengthening the foundations for another year of good results in line with our long term strategic goals,” CEO Nicandro Durante said in reviewing the results.

“The underlying business performance, measured by constant rates of exchange, was strong, with revenue up by 4 percent, adjusted profit up by 6 percent and adjusted diluted earnings per share up by 10 percent.

“The business performance was impacted by industry volume contraction in some parts of the world and fragile economic conditions persisting, notably in Europe. Despite the good performance in Asia-Pacific, group cigarette volume from subsidiaries was 332 billion, down 3.4 percent. This was also adversely compounded by trade inventory movements last year in specific markets, notably Brazil and the GCC, and the leap-year impact. Excluding these one-offs, the cigarette volume decline would have been 2 percent.

“We continued to grow cigarette market share in our top 40 markets, led by the good performances of the global drive brands. Globally, Dunhill, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall all grew market share, while Kent was stable. Collectively, our four GDBs achieved good volume growth of 2.3 percent. Our other international brands grew by 1.9 percent and, combined with our global drive brands, now make up nearly 60 percent of our total cigarette volume.

“This month, CN Creative, our stand-alone company specializing in the development of next-generation products, launched Vype in the U.K., the group’s new e-cigarette brand. This is another step in our ongoing commitment to developing a portfolio of next-generation products alongside our tobacco business.”

John Daly will step down as British American Tobacco’s chief operating officer at the end of December and will not be replaced.

“It is not intended, at this point in time, to appoint a further executive director or successor to the role of chief operating officer,” a note on BAT’s website said. “The four regional directors and the group operations director will report to the chief executive officer directly from 1 January 2014.”

Daly was appointed to the management board in 2004, joining the main board as COO in 2010. During his 19-year career with BAT, he held various senior management positions, notably marketing director—P J Carroll, area director—Middle East & North Africa and regional director—Asia Pacific.

“The board and I wish John all the very best for a thoroughly well-earned retirement,” said CEO Nicandro Durante. “We will all miss John’s passion, commitment, energy and great humor.

“John has played a huge role in the history of British American Tobacco, steering all the businesses he has run to outstanding results. He will be remembered for his love of the business and his commitment to the people in the organization. He leaves behind a true leadership legacy.”

According to the note, during the first quarter of 2014, Daly will “focus on the transitioning of key projects and initiatives.”

He will retire from the board in April 2014.

The National Federation of Retail Newsagents (NFRN) in Ireland is advising the government to tackle the sale of illicit cigarettes, according to a story in the Irish Examiner.

The story said that a new [unspecified] survey had shown that almost 28 percent of discarded packs across the country were untaxed and, therefore, illicit.

The survey, covering 22 major centers, revealed also the existence of regional black spots where the illicit trade in cigarettes is on the increase.

The president of the NFRN, Joe Sweeney, is calling for the introduction of on-the-spot fines for the possession of counterfeit tobacco, as is the case in Canada.

The research showed that smokers in Drogheda, County Louth, and Tallaght, Dublin, were the biggest consumers of illicit cigarettes, while smokers in Clonmel, County Tipperary, consumed the fewest.

President Vladimir Putin has urged Russia’s health and finance ministries to devise a scheme for channeling a portion of tobacco excise revenue to the health-care sector, according to a story in Russia Beyond The Headlines quoting an Interfax report.

The idea was said to have been proposed by Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova and the Astrakhan regional governor, Alexander Zhilkin, at a meeting of the State Council presidium.

“This is something to be discussed with the Finance Ministry,” said Putin. “You know how the Finance Ministry looks at this. We have many very important things to do here in Russia. Channeling taxes to some specific goal would be a very unusual thing to do. This is done in some countries, but not too often.”

Skvortsova said the funding would be extremely useful for the health services, which were provided without charge.

British American Tobacco said today that it had launched on the U.K. market its first electronic cigarette.

Vype will be made available initially online, though there are plans to move it into mainstream retail outlets from September 2013.

In a note posted on its website, BAT said that Vype used a nicotine e-liquid that was made in the U.K. to current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) standards and that contained only pharmaceutical-grade nicotine.

Vype is currently available in a disposable format, but there are plans to supplement the product range with a rechargeable version in the near future.
“The development of inhaled nicotine products, which includes e-cigarettes, is a natural extension of British American Tobacco’s approach to tobacco harm reduction, which has been evolving over a number of years,” BAT’s press note said.

BAT already had an interest in electronic cigarettes through CN Creative Ltd., a U.K.-based startup company that offers electronic cigarettes on the U.K. market and overseas.

Japan Tobacco Inc.’s volume cigarette sales during the three months to the end of June, at 29.3 billion, were down by 0.2 percent on those of the three months to the end of June 2012.

Comparing the same periods, industry volume was said to have declined by 2.0 percent; so JT’s market share increased from 59.6 percent to 60.5 percent.

The share growth was driven by sales of Mevius (the brand known as Mild Seven up until February), which was the subject of sales promotions and new version launches that included Mevius Premium Menthol Option with a capsule filter.

Core revenue for the domestic business during the three months to the end of June, at ¥165.2 billion, was down by 0.1 percent on that of the three months to the end of June 2012, while adjusted EBITDA was down by 1.1 percent to ¥75.8 billion.

JT’s consolidated results for the first quarter included January–March figures for Japan Tobacco International, which saw its shipments during January–March 2013, at 92.6 billion, fall by 6.4 percent from those of January–March 2012, 98.9 billion.

Comparing the same periods, global flagship brand shipments fell by 4.5 percent to 58.4 billion.

Although volumes were down, JTI reported that its year-on-year market share continued to grow “in almost all key markets, including France, Italy, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey and the U.K.”

Core revenue for the international business during the three months to the end of March, at ¥252.3 billion, was up by 16.4 percent on that of the three months to the end of March 2013, while adjusted EBITDA was up by 23.8 percent to ¥99.0 billion.

JT’s consolidated first-quarter revenue for all of its businesses, at ¥547.9 billion, was up by 7.0 percent on that of the first quarter of 2012. Adjusted EBITDA, at ¥177.2 billion, was up by 13.6 percent and operating profit was up 13.9 percent to ¥146.5 billion.

“We have made a solid start to the new fiscal year,” said JT President and CEO Mitsuomi Koizumi. “Internationally, a strong price/mix drove continued profit growth despite unfavorable volume due to industry contraction. In Japan, Mevius continued to drive steady market share growth, demonstrating that the rebranding of Mild Seven to Mevius has been completed successfully.

“Looking ahead, despite a challenging business environment, we are confident that we can achieve the Business Plan 2013 targets, pursuing quality top-line growth.”

Meanwhile, JTI reported separately that its cigarette shipments during the three months to the end of June, at 109.0 billion, were down by 3.9 percent on those of the three months to the end of June 2012, 113.5 billion.

At the same time, global flagship brand shipments were down by 0.3 percent to 69.5 billion.

Core revenue was up by 3.8 percent to US$3,112 million.

A study conducted in May has put the prevalence of smoking among Japanese adults at 20.9 percent, down 0.2 of a percentage point on that of a year earlier.

Smoking among men was down by 0.5 of a percentage point to 32.2 percent, while smoking among woman was up by 0.1 of a percentage point to 10.5 percent.

These figures, published today by Japan Tobacco Inc., were taken from the Japan Smoking Rate Survey, which has been conducted annually since 1965.

Using total population figures from the Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, JT calculates that Japan’s smoking population comprises 21.95 million people, down from 22.16 million last year.

Smoking among men has fallen from 16.50 million to 16.23 million, while smoking among women has risen from 5.66 million to 5.72 million.

JT put the declining trend of smoking in Japan down to the country’s aging population, growing awareness about the health risks associated with smoking, the tightening of smoking-related regulations and a tax and price hike in October 2010.

The May 2013 survey was conducted using a stratified two-stage method, by mailing questionnaires to about 32,000 adult men and women nationwide. JT collected 19,630 (61.2 percent) valid responses from the total population surveyed.

The U.K. smokers’ lobby group FOREST has launched a campaign to fight an EU directive that will ban tobacco products that are currently legal and severely restrict consumer choice.

In announcing its latest initiative, FOREST said the No Thank EU campaign would give retailers and consumers the opportunity to register their opposition to the proposed regulations that included a ban on menthol cigarettes and 10-packs.

As proposed, the revised Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) would outlaw, too, smaller pouches of roll-your-own tobacco, restrict the size and shape of cigarette packs and impose larger health warnings on all tobacco products.

“Prohibition doesn’t work,” said FOREST campaigns manager Angela Harbutt. “Retailers will be robbed of income from outlawed products. Denied choice, consumers will be driven to the black market where there will be a flourishing trade in banned goods.

“The Directive is proceeding with indecent haste. Members of parliament have been denied the opportunity to scrutinize the proposals, yet the impact on retailers and consumers in Britain is potentially enormous.

“Regulations like this should be a matter for elected politicians in Westminster, not unelected bureaucrats in Brussels. We urge retailers and consumers who share our concern to make their opinions known by supporting our campaign.”

The launch of the No Thank EU campaign follows the success of FOREST’s Hands Off Our Packs campaign, which generated a huge response to the government’s consultation on plain packaging of tobacco. More than 420,000 people registered their opposition to the policy, more than 265,000 of them via FOREST.

FOREST is supported by British American Tobacco, Imperial Tobacco Limited and Gallaher Limited (a member of the Japan Tobacco Group of Companies).

Further information on the new campaign is at: www.NoThankEU.com.