EUROPEAN NEWS BULLETIN - EU9830 03 AUGUST 1998 (fwd)

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

The latest version of Globalink's excellent European News Bulletin. As
always Globalink subscription information follows at the bottom of this
post.

Robert Weissman
Essential Information			|   Internet:	rob@essential.org

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!#  GLOBALink Tobacco - Weekly European News Bulletin
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EUROPEAN NEWS BULLETIN - EU9830 03 AUGUST 1998

CONTENTS:

EUROPE - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES

AUSTRIA: Foreign expansion of Austria Tabak.
FRANCE: First semester tobacco results.
FRANCE: 1998 first semester surplus figures.
GERMANY: Brinkmann/Villinger cigarillo prices up.
SPAIN: Illegal cigarette sales detected.
SPAIN: Job cuts at Tabacalera.
SPAIN: Report on drug use.
SPAIN: SEPPA authorised to sell its shares.
UK: Patterns of alcohol, cigarette and illicit drug use in English
adolescents.

EASTERN EUROPE - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES

RUSSIA: Akerlund and Rausing plant in St. Petersburg.
RUSSIA: Top ten advertisers in 1st quarter 1998.


EUROPE - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES

AUSTRIA: Foreign expansion of Austria Tabak.

According to Director Heinz Schiendl, Austria Tabak (AT) is to 
take a decision by September 1998 about a joint venture for its
German subsidiary Tobaccoland. The new company will supply the 
convenience sector such as petrol stations and bakeries. AT is 
negotiating with two out of the original five potential partners. 
The joint venture will not include the vending machine sector of 
Tobaccoland, which contributes more than 50% to profits and 25% 
to turnover. AT expects foreign sales to increase by 600mn units 
to 8.6bn units in 1998, while domestic sales should rise to 14.7bn 
units from 12.9bn units in 1997, as the grey market is dying down. 
In Hungary, the AT subsidiary is expected to make its first operating 
profit in 1998. 

Source: Der Standard (XGO) 20 Jul 1998 p.15 
Language: GERMAN No. 06659856
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


FRANCE: First semester tobacco results.

Results released by the CDIT (the French tobacco information 
centre) for the first semester of 1998 show that the French 
tobacco market remained stable. In 1998, 45,818 tons of tobacco 
were sold, compared to 45,360 tons in the same period of 1997, 
and 47,325 in 1996. In terms of cigarettes, sales totalled 41,261bn 
(32.32bn light tobacco, 8.93bn dark tobacco). The cigar market 
rose 4.7% compared to the first semester of 1997, at 792mn units,
however sales of both pipe and rolling tobacco fell 1.1% to 3,590
tons.

Source: Les Echos (LE) 22 Jul 1998 p.8 
Language: FRENCH No. 06659888
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


FRANCE: 1998 first semester surplus figures.

In the first semester of 1998, France had a commercial food surplus 
of FFr 13.9bn, down 5% compared to the same period in 1997. Exports 
rose 2% to FFr 55.9bn, imports rose 4.5% to FFr 42bn. However, 
tobacco was one of the products in the highest deficit range at -
FFr 1.7bn (+3%) (the highest deficit products were Soya at -FFr 
1.96bn (+10.1%), followed by fish at -FFr 1.93bn (+30.4%), by 
tropical fruits  with -FFr 1.76bn (-12.9%) and then tobacco). 

Source: Le MOCI (XNI) 09-22 Jul 1998 No1345-1346, p.54-55 
Language: FRENCH No. 06659468
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


GERMANY: Brinkmann/Villinger cigarillo prices up.

German tobacco company Brinkmann Niemeyer GmbH raised the price
for its filter cigarillos Westpoint Filters Full Flavour and Lights
from DM 2.50 to DM 2.70 for a pack of 19 on 01 July 1998. Villinger 
Sohne has also raised the price for its Braniff filter cigarillos 
to DM 2.80 for a pack of 20, after reducing them from DM 3.80 to 
DM 2.60 at the end of January 1998. The price for Newminster Filter 
remains at DM 2.95 for a pack of 20. It seems that the third player 
in the low-priced filter cigarillo segment, Badische Tabakmanufaktur
Roth-HUndle (BTM), will reduce the price for its West Tobaccos Full
Flavour and Lights from DM 3.95 to DM 3.45 for a pack of 19. This 
means that the price for West Tobacco is approaching that of its
low-priced rivals. 

Source: Die Tabak Zeitung (TZ) 10 Jul 1998 p.1 
Language: GERMAN No. 06660794
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


SPAIN: Illegal cigarette sales detected.

Spain's Guardia Civil has detected illegal cigarette sales amounting 
to Pta 600mn per year in Valladolid and in doing so has uncovered 
fraud totalling Pta 20,000mn in the rest of the country. In Valladolid, 
eight official tobacconists were allegedly selling cigarettes through 
bars or vending machines owned by family or friends, while obtaining 
a commission of 8.5% or higher. Spanish legislation does not allow 
tobacconists to sell outside the location which they own and which 
is authorised for the sale of cigarettes.

Source: La Gaceta de los Negocios (ZDA) 22 Jul 1998 p.13 
Language: SPANISH No. 06659689
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


SPAIN: Job cuts at Tabacalera.

The Ministry of Labour has authorised Spanish tobacco company 
Tabacalera to reduce its work force by 900 through an early 
retirement and voluntary redundancy scheme. The reduction in 
the work force is expected to be completed by 30th June 1999. 

Source: La Vanguardia (LV) 24 Jul 1998 p.56
Language: SPANISH No. 06661039
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


SPAIN: Report on drug use.

According to the 1997 report on drugs by the Spanish Observatory
(Observatorio Espanol sobre Drogas), there were 20% fewer deaths 
from drug consumption in 1997 than one year earlier. The 472 deaths 
in 1997 were mainly from heroin use. The number of heroin consumers 
was down at 0.23% in 1997 versus 0.6% in 1996. Drug control 
operations in Spain rose 22.6% in 1997 (to 79,445). Some 18,400 
kilos of cocaine were confiscated, up 34%, and 315,300 kilos of 
cannabis, up 27.5%. Around 7% of Spaniards habitually consume
cannabis. The number of smokers was down in 1997 to 32.9%, 
compared to 34.7% in 1995, however more women between 15 and 18 
are taking up the smoking.

Source: El Pais (ELP) 21 Jul 1998 p.20 
Language: SPANISH No. 06659686
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


SPAIN: SEPPA authorised to sell its shares.

The Spanish state shareholder Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones
Patrimoniales (SEPPA) has been authorised to sell its shares in 
Telefonica (telecoms), Aldeasa (duty free), and Tabacalera (tobacco),
by the authority for privatisations Consejo Consultivo de
Privatizaciones (CCP). SEPPA will sell at auction to banks its 
shares in Aldeasa (4.96%), Telefonica (0.31%), and Tabacalera (3.2%).
Banks will have to sell the shares, which amount to nearly Pta 
49,312mn, to institutional shareholders in a 24 hour period.

Source: Expansion (EXN) 24 Jul 1998 p.3 
Language: SPANISH No. 06661017
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


UK: Patterns of alcohol, cigarette and illicit drug use in English
adolescents.

The aim of this study was to describe associations between alcohol,
tobacco and illicit drug use in adolescents and demographic factors 
associated with substance use. The study was a classroom survey of 
the total population of pupils (n = 5,383, ages 11-16) in six schools
selected from different locations around England. Respondents were 
asked confidentially about their use and extent of use of alcohol, 
cigarettes and illegal drugs. The prevalence of regular substance 
use within the same sample rose from 30.4% at age 11 to 83.9% at 
age 16. The prevalence of alcohol use did not differ between girls 
and boys, but smoking was more prevalent in girls and illegal drug 
use was more prevalent in boys. Alcohol was used more frequently 
than any other substance, or combination of substances, and alcohol 
use almost invariably accompanied the use of other substances: 
exclusive use of cigarettes or illegal drugs was negligible. In 
addition, high levels of alcohol intoxication were associated with 
increased use of both illegal drugs and cigarettes. Overall, around
half of the drinkers (46.8%) preferred alcopops to other types of 
alcoholic drink; this figure was greater in girls (56.4%) than in 
boys (37.1%), but fell sharply with age (62.9% at age 11; 37.7% at 
age 16), particularly in boys. Preference for spirits increased
with age, and was particularly marked in girls (28.4% in girls 
vs. 18.5% in boys at age 16). Spirits drinkers were more likely 
to use cigarettes and drugs, and had been more frequently drunk, 
than either beer/wine drinkers, particularly among 11-13 year-old
girls. The study concluded that the use of both tobacco and illicit 
drugs appears to be strongly associated with alcohol use, which is
more prevalent, and the risk of smoking and illicit drug use is 
particularly high in adolescents who report high levels of drunkenness.
The results of the study are consistent with a simple threshold
model of substance abuse in which alcohol occupies a low threshold
position relative to the higher threshold of cigarettes and illegal
drugs. Smoking, drug use and drunkenness were lowest in beer/wine
drinkers, intermediate in alcopop drinkers, and highest in spirits
drinkers. (Author abstract.)

Source: Addiction 1998; 93(8): 1199-1208


EASTERN EUROPE - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES

RUSSIA: Akerlund and Rausing plant in St. Petersburg.

The Swedish Ekerlund & Rausing Group, owned by Finnish Ahlstrom, is 
to build a plant producing packaging material for tobacco and foodstuff
industries near St. Petersburg, in north-western Russia. The company 
aims to have the plant operational by the year 2000. Building the 
plant will cost an estimated Fmk 500mn (US$ 91mn). 

Source: Taloussanomat (AMB) 18 Jul 1998 p.30
Language: FINNISH No. 06659221
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98


RUSSIA: Top ten advertisers in 1st quarter 1998.

The Russian business newspaper Reklamny mir (Advertising World) has
published a list of 50 companies whose advertising expenditures were
the largest in Moscow and St. Petersburg in the first quarter of 1998.
Top ten advertisers  are as follows (total expenditures (US$) for 
advertising in Moscow and St. Petersburg in January-March 1998):

1. R.J.R. Tobacco 1,657,400
2. British American Tobacco 1,590,700
3. Philip Morris Products 1,140,000
4. Nestle  947,000
5. Bacardi-Martini 851,700
6. Reemtsma 812,000
7. Coca-Cola 761,400
8. Unilever 663,400
9. Pepsico 558,500
10. International Distillers 482,300

Source: Reklamny mir (ESK) 6/Jun 1998 p.30 
Language: RUSSIAN No. 06661264
Source: Information Access Company 03/8/98
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