China's Cigarette Consumption Jumps 39% to 2.4 Trillion, Nearing Half of Global Total
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 27
China's Cigarette Consumption Jumps 39% to 2.4 Trillion, Nearing Half of Global Total
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 27
2.4 trillion cigarettes were sold annually in China in 2023, up 39% from 2003 and enough to account for nearly half of global consumption.
That rise came even as cigarette sales fell 26% in the rest of the world, with Beijing still lacking a national indoor smoking ban and making only slow progress on tobacco control.
Smoking rates have declined over the past 13 years as fewer young people smoke, but overall sales kept climbing, pointing to heavier consumption among remaining smokers.
Average prices of about $3 a pack—roughly one-third of U.S. levels—have helped keep cigarettes widely affordable in a market the government has struggled to curb.
Why did China's cigarette sales rise 39% after its leader promised to curb smoking 14 years ago?
As Beijing falters, can Shanghai's bold new anti-smoking plan provide a blueprint for the rest of the nation?