European Bulletin - 9 August 1999 (fwd)

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

Globalink's European Bulletin EU9928 9 August 1999

Headlines

Europe

Austria: Austria Tabak gets approval for takeover 

Bulgaria: Bulgartabak to expand foreign business

Finland: Tobacco on sale on the Internet

France: Tobacco sales down in 1st-half 1999

France: 36 million counterfeit Marlboros from China seized in France 

Poland: Government to ban tobacco ads?

Spain: Smokers could sue US companies

Switzerland: BAT cigarette factory to be closed



International

India: Kerala court ban on cigarettes ignites industry anger. 

USA: Cigarette makers increase ad spending by 10% in 1997 



Full Text:

AUSTRIA: Austria Tabak gets approval for takeover

As expected, unconditional approval of Austria Tabak's takeover of Swedish
Match's cigarette business was granted by the Estonian competition
authority on July 12, 1999, and by its Swedish counterpart on July 21,
1999. Austria Tabak said the transaction would provide it with a
springboard for further internationalisation of its cigarette business.

Source: NewsEdge 30/7/99, Tobacco BBS



BULGARIA: Bulgartabak to expand foreign business

The Bulgarian state-owned tobacco group Bulgartabak is to expand business
especially in eastern Europe and Latin America. Bulgartabak has seen a
fast growth in sales over the past two years. Besides upgrading domestic
production, the company has built production facilities in export
countries in order to avoid taxes and customs duties. At present,
Bulgartabak has three factories in Russia and one in Ukraine. At present,
annual output of each factory amounts to about 5,000 tonnes but production
can be increased in line with market demand. A new factory is soon to be
opened in Romania. Bulgartabak is planning to build production facilities
also in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Paraguay. The company is aiming
to increase exports from 3,000 t to 10,000 t in 1999. In 1998, output
increased by 30% to 23,000 tonnes.

Source: New Europe, 26 Jul - 01 Aug 1999, The Gale Group



FINLAND/ESTONIA: Tobacco on sale on the internet

Finnish authorities have found a company on the Internet selling tobacco
via Estonia. The company breaks the Finnish Consumer Protection Act as
well as regulations which forbid tobacco advertising in Finland. The
company which operates on Finnish Saunalahden Serveri's server sells 28
different tobacco brands on its home pages. The company states that it is
up to the customer to decide whether or not to notify the customs of the
order. The tobacco cartons are ordered via e-mail and they are paid for in
advance to the company's bank account in Finland. Finnish Consumer
Ombudsman considers the procedure unreasonable in consumer trade. The
Finnish Product Control Office has asked Saunalahden Serveri to provide a
statement on the matter.  According to the MD Harri Johannesdahl of the
server, it is impossible to control what customers do on their home pages.
According to the terms of contract, the page provider is responsible for
the content.

Source: The Gale Group, 21 Jul 1999



FRANCE: tobacco sales down in 1st-half 1999

In the first-half of 1999, tobacco sales in France were down 1% at 45,341
tons. Prices rose by approximately 5% on 4 January 1999. Taking this into
account, the overall value of tobacco sales increased almost 4% to FFr
40.36bn in the given period. Sales varied according to product; smoking
tobacco (rolling and pipe) sales were up 1.9% at 3,661 tons, cigar and
cigarillo sales were up 1.3% at 802.6mn units, cigarette sales were down
1.3% at 40.703bn units (32.702bn Virginia cigarettes, 8bn dark tobacco
cigarettes).

La Tribune, 22 Jul 1999, The Gale Group



FRANCE: 36 million counterfeit Marlboros from China seized in France

French customs officers last week seized 36 million counterfeit Marlboro
cigarettes in four containers from China that were bound for the Canary
islands. The cigarettes, packed in cartons labelled "Made in USA", are
worth 36 million francs (5.4 million euros).

Source: NewsEdge 30/7/99, Tobacco BBS



POLAND: Government may ban tobacco ads

Poland’s parliament may implement a total ban on all tobacco
advertisements as politicians are working on an amendment to the Act on
the Protection of Health Against the Effects of Tobacco Usage. However the
International Advertising Agency (IAA) has contended that such a move
threatens free speech, and plans to fight the ban.

Source: Tobacco Journal International, July/Aug 1999, Tobacco BBS





SPAIN: Smokers could sue us companies

The recent ruling against cigarette companies in the US state of Florida
could open the door for Spanish smokers to sue the manufacturers or their
subsidiaries in Spain, legal experts believe. Once the Florida ruling has
been confirmed, actions in Spanish courts could begin. It is reported that
such action could be taken on the basis of the known dangers of smoking
without a need to demonstrate any specific damage to health.

Source: El Pais, 11 Jul 1999, The Gale Group



SWITZERLAND: BAT cigarette factory to be closed

Following the merger with Rothmans, cigarette producer BAT is
restructuring its operations in Switzerland. Production will be
concentrated in the factory of Rothmans subsidiary Burrus in Boncourt. The
Burrus head office in Lausanne will become the administrative headquarters
of the merged group. Geneva, where BAT has so far had its Swiss
headquarters and a factory, will be abandoned completely.  Altogether some
hundred jobs will be lost in the restructuring process.  Accounting for
natural fluctuation and early retirement, BAT expects only 27 forced
redundancies.

Source: Le Temps (ANC)16 Jul 1999, The Gale Group



INTERNATIONAL

INDIA: Kerala court ban on cigarettes ignites industry anger.

The tobacco industry has protested strongly against the anti-smoking drive
launched by the police in the wake of the Kerala High Court ban on smoking
in public places. The bidi workers and small shop owners affected by the
ban have already hit the street as the sales have plummeted in urban areas
since the implementation of the ban from July 12. While the major bidi
manufacturers are planning to appeal to the Supreme Court against the ban,
the bidi workers and shop-owners are preparing for a state-wide agitation.
The police are forced to apprehend as many people as possible as they are
supposed to file a report before the High Court a month after the
implementing the ban. The actual number of smokers held by the police
throughout the state is not available. However, the unofficial estimates
put the number of those caught by the police in the past one week at more
than 4,000.

Source: Tobacco BBS 29/7/99





USA: Cigarette makers increase ad spending by 10% in 1997

U.S. cigarette makers increased spending on newspaper ads by 20.7 percent
and overall promotion expenditures rose nearly 11 percent in 1997 while
sales declined, the Federal Trade Commission reported to Congress.
Spending for newspaper ads, which since 1992 has accounted for less than
half of one percent of overall U.S. cigarette advertising expenditures,
rose from $14.1 million to $17 million from 1996 to 1997, the FTC said.
Continuing a long-term trend, the five major U.S. cigarette makers
reported that they sold 5.5 billion fewer cigarettes in the U.S. market
than they did in 1996. The industry reported that it had spent just
$215,000 on Internet advertising in 1997.

Source: Bloomberg News, 28/7/99