Steep Decline in Cigarette Imports

Some 3.8 billion cigarettes were imported during the 11 months to February 18, indicating a 73% decline compared with the corresponding period of last year, said the head of Tobacco Planning and Supervision Center, affiliated with the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade.

“Cigarette production in Iran is estimated to reach 45 billion in the current Iranian year (ending March 20, 2017), up 50% compared with last year,” Ali Asghar Ramzi was also quoted as saying by ISNA.

The government aims to call a halt to cigarette imports.

Qasem Khorshidi, spokesman of the Headquarters for Combating the Smuggling of Commodities and Foreign Exchange, said over the 10 months to January 19, close to 1.4 billion contraband cigarettes were confiscated, which marks a rise of 302% year-on-year.

According to the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Iranians smoke about 55 billion cigarettes annually.