Health Authorities Push for Higher Tobacco Taxes and Prices, Benefiting the E-Cigarette Industry

On December 10, the National Health and Family Planning Commission of China (referred to as the NHFPC) held a routine press conference to discuss the country's smoking control situation and the legal framework for smoking control. They stated that they would consider increasing taxes and prices on tobacco products to protect public health.

During the press conference, Yao Hongwen, Deputy Director of the NHFPC's Publicity Department, stated that there are over 300 million smokers in China, with a smoking rate of 28.1% among those aged 15 and older, and 740 million non-smokers are exposed to secondhand smoke. Each year, 1.366 million people die from smoking-related diseases, with about 100,000 deaths caused by diseases related to secondhand smoke exposure.

Yao pointed out that the NHFPC will actively cooperate with relevant departments to research and formulate measures to promote the increase of taxes and prices on tobacco products. According to the World Health Organization's recommendations, the consumption tax rate on tobacco products should be raised to over 70% of the retail price to effectively control smoking.

Industry insiders believe that the increase in tobacco taxes and prices is expected to benefit the e-cigarette industry.