China puts up price of tobacco for cigarettes
Print Edition
China is to raise the average purchase price of flue-cured tobacco by 5 percent, the government said yesterday, as the world’s largest tobacco consumer cracks down on a habit some say is partly sustained by cheap cigarettes.
The price rise comes after health authorities said they would work to ban smoking in public places nationwide this year — a law that has long been in the works.
The increase was imposed by the National Development and Reform Commission, China’s top planning authority, and the China National Tobacco Corporation, the state-owned cigarette monopoly.
Flue-cured tobacco accounts for more than 90 percent of China’s tobacco crop.
The NDRC and tobacco corporation said in a statement that the price increase would “promote the healthy development of the tobacco industry” as well as balancing supply and demand and guiding farmers in their production targets.
Price regulators at all levels should strictly enforce the measure, and those who seek to lower tobacco prices must be “dealt with severely,” they said.
China sets purchase prices for all major agricultural products in order to protect farmers’ incomes and ensure steady output.
Anti-smoking advocates have said that raising the price of cigarettes could play a major role in deterring smoking.
Cigarettes in China are among the cheapest in the world, contributing to their widespread use by men on low incomes.
It is unclear whether the increase in the purchase price of tobacco will be passed on to consumers.
Lawmakers have been considering tougher anti-smoking measures for years, but experts say the powerful state-backed tobacco company has opposed measures including raising cigarette prices and the use of stronger health warnings on cigarette packs.
Beijing pledged in 2008 to prohibit smoking in most public venues, including government offices, but no-smoking signs are frequently ignored.
Several cities have banned smoking in public places, but enforcement has been lax.
Recently, the central government ordered officials to set an example by being smoke-free at public venues.
China is home to more than 300 million smokers, and cigarettes are ubiquitous on social occasions.
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