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  • PMI Study Puts EU Economic Contribution at €343 Billion From 2021 to 2025

    PMI Study Puts EU Economic Contribution at €343 Billion From 2021 to 2025

    Philip Morris International (PMI) contributed nearly €343 billion to the European Union economy from 2021 through 2025, including €22.3 billion in spending with European suppliers, €27.4 billion invested across its European operations, and €39.5 billion in exports, according to an economic footprint study prepared by EY-Parthenon and released Oct. 15. The study also found that PMI’s European value chain supported nearly 164,000 jobs in 2025, including about 22,500 direct jobs, and that the company invested €422 million in research and development in Europe. PMI reported an additional approximately €2.2 billion in R&D activities in Switzerland.

    PMI said the figures reflect its manufacturing, supply-chain, research, and commercial activities across the region. The company reported that more than half of its net revenues in Europe came from smoke-free products in the fourth quarter of 2025. Since 2008, PMI has invested more than $16 billion globally in developing, scientifically assessing, and commercializing smoke-free products, including heated-tobacco devices, nicotine pouches, and e-vapor products.

    The report is the second edition of PMI’s EU Economic Footprint Study and covers the period from 2021 to 2025. PMI Europe President Marco Hannapel said the company’s investments and industrial operations contribute to the region’s economic activity and called for regulatory frameworks that support investment and innovation. The full EU Economic Footprint Study is available from PMI.

  • PMI to Report Third-Quarter Results Oct. 21

    PMI to Report Third-Quarter Results Oct. 21

    Philip Morris International will release its 2026 third-quarter and first nine-month financial results at approximately 7 a.m. ET on Oct. 21, followed by a live audio webcast at 9 a.m. ET hosted by Group Chief Financial Officer Massimo Andolina. The webcast will include a discussion of financial results and a question-and-answer session with the investment community. The presentation, recording, and supporting materials will be available on the company’s investor relations website.

  • PMI Forum Highlights Smoke-Free Alternatives in Asia, Latin America

    PMI Forum Highlights Smoke-Free Alternatives in Asia, Latin America

    Philip Morris International (PMI) convened its first Central Asian Technovation forum in Tashkent, bringing together government officials, scientists, doctors, business leaders, and consumer advocates from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia to discuss the role of smoke-free alternatives in tobacco policy. PMI representatives cited Japan, Sweden, and the United States as examples of markets where alternatives such as heated-tobacco products, snus, and nicotine pouches have been associated with declining cigarette use.

    PMI’s Dr. Tomoko Iida said cigarette sales in Japan fell by more than half between 2011 and 2023, while daily smoking in Sweden declined to 3.7% in 2025. Speakers also discussed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s reviews of certain tobacco and nicotine products, the importance of evidence-based regulation, and the risks of illicit trade. Participants emphasized that quitting smoking remains the preferred outcome, while arguing that adult smokers who do not quit should have access to accurate information about alternatives. Uzbekistan’s State Customs Committee reported reducing the illicit share of the tobacco market to about 7% and seizing more than 3 million illicit cigarette packs this year.

    Also:

    PMI Highlights Smoke-Free Products in Latin America

    Philip Morris International highlighted its smoke-free portfolio at its Technovation 2026 event in Buenos Aires on Oct. 7–8, showcasing IQOS heated-tobacco products and ZYN nicotine pouches. PMI Chief Global Growth Officer Stefano Volpetti said smoke-free products account for more than 7% of the market in Mexico City. Argentina lifted its prohibition on heated-tobacco products in May and introduced product-registration requirements, opening a regulated path for their sale.

    A PMI-commissioned survey found that only 8% of respondents across four Latin American countries were familiar with nicotine pouches, indicating limited consumer awareness of the category in the markets surveyed. The company’s regional strategy includes expanding its smoke-free product portfolio as regulatory frameworks and market access evolve across Latin America.

  • Japan’s Heated Tobacco Market Reaches New Milestone

    Japan’s Heated Tobacco Market Reaches New Milestone

    Heated tobacco and other noncombustible products accounted for a larger share of Japan’s tobacco sales than cigarettes in 2025, marking a significant shift in the country’s market, according to Toyo Keizai. Philip Morris International’s IQOS leads the heated tobacco category with about 70% market share, followed by Japan Tobacco’s Ploom at 16.4% and British American Tobacco’s glo at 14.3%, based on Euromonitor data cited by the publication.

    According to the article, Japan’s Oct. 1 tax changes narrowed the price gap between cigarettes and heated tobacco, while potentially tighter regulation could create additional challenges. BAT and PMI have also entered Japan’s nicotine-pouch market, with JT following this year.

  • Brazil Intercepts 200K Illicit Vapes

    Brazil Intercepts 200K Illicit Vapes

    Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service seized a container at the Port of Santos containing about 200,000 smuggled electronic smoking devices in an operation conducted Sept. 18. The shipment originated in Yantian, China, and was destined for Montevideo, Uruguay, but was falsely declared as LED screens and electronics.

    Authorities found that about 95% of the cargo consisted of undeclared electronic cigarettes without marketing authorization. The seizure followed information provided by Philip Morris International’s Illicit Trade Prevention team, which alerted Brazil’s General Coordination of Customs Administration after identifying that the vessel would stop in Santos before continuing to Uruguay.

  • Canada Health Minister Rejects Calls to Loosen Pouch Rules

    Canada Health Minister Rejects Calls to Loosen Pouch Rules

    Canadian Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel said she is not considering changes to Canada’s regulations governing nicotine pouches, which are regulated as smoking-cessation aids and restricted to adult sales through pharmacies. Zonnic, manufactured by Imperial Tobacco, is currently the only authorized nicotine pouch brand, with sales limited to 4 mg pouches and restricted flavors. Unsmoke Canada, part of Philip Morris International’s Rothmans, Benson & Hedges business, has campaigned for allowing pouches to be sold through retail stores, arguing that broader legal availability could address the illicit market.

    Michel acknowledged challenges with illicit sales, including online sales of products such as Zyn, while tobacco-control groups called for stronger enforcement rather than looser rules. The groups said nicotine pouch use among Canadian youth is increasing and warned that wider retail availability could increase youth access.

  • PMI Expands Global Services Hub in Philippines

    PMI Expands Global Services Hub in Philippines

    Philip Morris International’s global business services hub in Makati, Philippines, added more than 80 positions as it moved into higher-value services at its 8 Rockwell location. PMI Business Solutions Philippines began operations in 2021 with a focus on finance and information technology services for 20 markets. The hub now employs more than 500 professionals providing 600 services across finance, human resources, IT, commercial services, data analytics, supply chain, project management, and fleet services for 160 markets.

    PMIBS President Harry Tan said the company plans to use artificial intelligence to support more complex services and is focusing on talent development, operational expansion, and AI transformation. Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corporation President Zhenya Ivanov reaffirmed PMI’s commitment to the Philippines and PMIBS’ role in the company’s broader transformation and growth. The Makati facility is PMI’s second global business services center and its first in Asia.

  • PMI Publishes First TNFD Report

    PMI Publishes First TNFD Report

    Today (September 22), Philip Morris International published its first Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Report, providing an assessment of nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks, and opportunities across its global value chain. The report examines how natural capital and ecosystem services affect areas including agricultural production, manufacturing, and access to raw materials.

    The report is part of PMI’s broader environmental disclosure efforts and follows its 2025 Climate Transition Plan. Nature is one of six strategic priorities under PMI’s Value Plan 2030+, alongside Consumers, Circularity, Climate, Our Workforce, and Workers in Our Value Chain. The report also includes examples of projects addressing water stewardship, biodiversity, soil restoration, and product circularity.

  • PMI Increases Dividend 8.8% to Annualized Rate of $6.40 per Share

    PMI Increases Dividend 8.8% to Annualized Rate of $6.40 per Share

    Philip Morris International’s (PMI) Board of Directors increased the company’s regular quarterly dividend by 8.8% to $1.60 per share, or an annualized rate of $6.40 per share, up from $1.47. The dividend is payable Oct. 26, to shareholders of record as of Oct. 2, with an ex-dividend date of Oct. 2.

    PMI said it has increased its annual dividend every year since becoming a publicly traded company in 2008. The latest increase brings the company’s cumulative dividend increase since its IPO to 248%, representing a compound annual growth rate of 7.2%.

  • Illicit Market Threatens Harm Reduction Progress

    Illicit Market Threatens Harm Reduction Progress

    The growing illicit nicotine market is creating risks for brand protection, consumer safety and tobacco harm reduction, speakers said at GTNF 2026 in Lisbon during the “Playing Defense – Brand Protection and its Impact on Harm Reduction and Consumers” panel. Following a keynote address, Lillian Ortega, founder and chief regulatory strategist at WOW Solutions, moderated the panel and said the U.S. unauthorized vape market is already significant and warned that “you can’t enforce your way out of it.” Ortega said an estimated 70% of the U.S. vape market is unauthorized, although the figure does not capture online sales and some vape shops, and argued that regulatory delays and gaps in FDA oversight can leave demand to illicit suppliers. She called for timely and predictable product authorization, better tracking of products entering the U.S. and greater information sharing throughout the supply chain.

    Michael Horowitz, managing counsel at RAI Services Company, said an entrenched illegal market is difficult to reverse, particularly when consumers may not realize they are purchasing unauthorized products. He also pointed to fragmented enforcement and the difficulty of distinguishing unauthorized products from products that are genuinely illicit.

    Abel Vecino, head of illicit trade prevention for Southwest Europe at Philip Morris International, said brand protection is also about protecting consumers as they move away from combustible products. He said criminal organizations are scaling production, moving closer to consumer markets and exploiting enforcement gaps, while adapting to demand for lower-priced products. Vecino called for greater cooperation with law enforcement and proactive partnerships before problems emerge.

    Stevan Vranes, global head of corporate affairs at Imperial Brands, said illicit products are increasingly visible in local communities and legitimate retail channels, while distinguishing legal from illegal products has become more difficult in newer nicotine categories. He said illicit cigarette factories across Europe can now produce up to 1 million cigarettes an hour and that illicit sales are increasingly moving online. Vranes called for a holistic approach, including greater pressure on social media and stronger action against online sales, while acknowledging that authorities cannot physically inspect every container entering global ports.