The new tobacco prices are known with a nice surprise for some smokers.
It’s a curiosity nestled among hundreds of price lines, in a barely readable table. Above all, it seems hardly believable. While the price of tobacco has continued to increase for several years and a new increase was applied on January 1, new prices will come into force in a few days. While most packs of cigarettes will continue to be sold at the same price, some will be priced higher, usually by a few dozen cents. But others will go down!
Without specifying the reasons for this reduction in the sales price, customs has published the prices that tobacconists will have to apply from March 1, 2024. In this long list where several of 7,000 references are piled up, some good news has slipped in for some smokers. Their package will cost less from next month. Six cigarette and cigar references are affected:
The aforementioned Winstons will benefit from a reduction of 50 cents per pack and will therefore now be sold for €11.50 per pack compared to 12 euros currently. The brand accounts for around 10% of tobacco sales in France. For the Maya, the reduction is 20 cents (€10.80 compared to €11).
On the cigarillo side, the two Signature Silhouette will inherit the largest reduction with a reduced cost of 1 euro per pack (5 euros compared to 6 euros). Furthermore, in addition to this list, it should be noted that the Eiroa classic Petit Corona 40×4 cigars (per 20) will be priced at 140 euros compared to 180 euros.
This announcement of the reduction in certain tobacco prices comes as the government announced that from 2025, most packs of cigarettes will increase to 12 euros and will increase in 2026 to 13 euros. Increases linked to tax increases to encourage the French to smoke less. According to scientific studies, smokers are ten times more likely to develop lung cancer.