The government will soon decide whether cigarette displays in shops should be banned. Health campaigners insist they should, believing this will reduce the number of young people smoking, while those who run convenience shops oppose the move, saying it will cost up to £1,000 to remove the displays and to fit under-the-counter trays to hold tobacco products. This, they warn, will increase queues in shops, levels of theft and smuggling. Whether a ban deters young people from smoking is fiercely contested. Several Canadian provinces that introduced a ban have witnessed a significant fall in you ... Jump to full article >>

MANILA, Philippines – The 8% excise tax increase is expected to trim the sales of the country’s leading cigarette manufacturer this year. Chris Nelson, president of PMFTC Inc., told reporters that the tobacco industry may not exceed last year’s record sales due to the higher excise tax that took effect January this year. “Let’s not forget that there was an increase in the excise tax on cigarettes in January and higher prices would understandably affect demand,” Nelson said. “It would be reasonable to assume that demand would be affected but overall, the industry outlo ... Jump to full article >>

Carreras Limited said its sales volumes slipped in the third quarter as smokers continue to retreat from its licit higher-priced cigarettes while embracing black market offerings. Company revenue fell seven per cent to J$3.47 billion in the quarter ending December 2010, while net profit dropped 16 per cent, from J$849 million or J$1.75 per share to J$714 million or J$1.47 per share, reflecting both declining sales and a 38 per cent erasure of investment income as yields fell on paper securities. The cigarette distributor has blamed the contraction in its business on both Finance Minister Audl ... Jump to full article >>

The Indian Affairs Council, a panel of state lawmakers and representatives from tribes around Idaho, met Wednesday in the Capitol and agreed to send a message to the House Revenue and Taxation Committee on a bill that would affect how cigarette taxes are handled on reservations: go slow. The council approved a motion calling for the drafting of a letter to committee chairman Dennis Lake and Speaker of the House Lawerence Denney calling for the panel to wait until at least March 7 before giving the measure additional hearings. The measure, introduced by Denney, a Republican from Midvale, would ... Jump to full article >>

BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Idaho lawmakers pondering a raise in the state tobacco tax say their support of the measure could hinge on tribal retailers agreeing to the same per-pack increase. Idaho lawmakers are working on legislation that would raise the state tax on cigarettes by $1.25 per pack. The bill would include a provision to have tribes adopt the same increase. The state cigarette tax is 57 cents per pack, but tribes are allowed to control their own prices. For example, the Coeur d’Alene Tribe charges only a 10-cent tax on each pack. House Speaker Lawerence Denney told the Lewist ... Jump to full article >>

The new tax, as proposed by legislation, would be $1.55 per pack for cigarettes. The bill also would raise taxes on other tobacco products from 7 percent of the wholesale price to 50 percent. CHARLESTON — A proposed state tax hike for cigarettes and other tobacco products cleared its first hurdle Thursday with lawmakers amending the bill so tax proceeds would be distributed to a number of health-based programs. The Senate Health and Human Resources Committee passed legislation raising tobacco taxes from $0.55 per pack of cigarettes to $1.55 per pack after an occasionally heated exchan ... Jump to full article >>

Zimbabwe’s tobacco output will increase at least 40 percent this year after a boost in funding to farmers from banks and firms, many of which are Chinese, and due to good weather, an industry official said on Wednesday. Chinese companies have become the major financiers and buyers of Zimbabwe’s tobacco crop and industry officials say these firms will buy at least half of this year’s tobacco. Tobacco’s earnings potential has fallen behind that of mining in recent years. Before the collapse of commercial agriculture in 2000, as President Robert Mugabe oversaw the seizures ... Jump to full article >>

Federal parks officials say they did nothing wrong when they allowed the state to redraw the map of the Brooklyn waterfront to allow a historic building in a park to be redeveloped into a theater. The National Parks Service issued the widely expected ruling on Tuesday that it supports its own 2008 decision that paved the way for the state to convert the decaying Tobacco Warehouse in DUMBO into a theater and cultural center inside Brooklyn Bridge Park. The finding won’t stop the Brooklyn Heights Association — one of three groups that sued stop the renovation — from battling on. “It sho ... Jump to full article >>

Robinson Oil Co.’s Rotten Robbie convenience store chain based in Santa Clara, Calif., has signed a deal with Smoker Friendly International LLC to be an authorized dealer. Rotten Robbie will co-brand with Smoker Friendly in its tobacco category. Rotten Robbie will be the exclusive retailer for SF/Smoker Friendly private-label tobacco products in its 34-store chain in that region of northern California. “We believe this is a great opportunity for both companies to serve tobacco consumers around northern California with outstanding tobacco products and tobacco accessory offerings, ... Jump to full article >>

The House is also considering a bill that could drive tobacco prices up all over the state. The House Health and Human Resources Committee is the first stop for a proposed legislation that would raise the tax on a pack of cigarettes by one dollar. Right now, the cigarette tax here is one of the lowest in the country at 55 cents per pack. The national average cigarette tax is $1.45 per pack. When it comes to smokeless tobacco, the tax would go up from seven percent of the wholesale price to fifty percent. Health officials say the increase could lead to fewer smokers and tobacco users. Rig ... Jump to full article >>

As a city leader, this is a scenario with which you don’t want to be faced. Faribault Tobacco, a local business, has been accused of selling tobacco to minors and selling while its license was suspended. Faribault Police have caught the store selling to underage smokers three times in the last two years, according to a memo given to the council by city attorney Scott Riggs. As a result of the transgressions, the city suspended the store’s license for seven days and fined the owner $250. Police say an undercover officer purchased tobacco during the suspension. On Tuesday night, the council ... Jump to full article >>