Bulgaria - Finance Minister Djankov, " Less Smoking Is Good for Economy.."


Simeon Djankov..
February 23, 2010 - Bulgaria's Finance Minister, Simeon Djankov, spoke to the management of the cigarette and tobacco manufacturing sector at the Council of Ministers building Monday, February 22nd.

Djankov, declared the Bulgarian state-owned monopoly Bulgartabac is not behind the large-scale cigarette contraband busted recently in the port of Varna. (Bulgaria - do producers support contraband cigarettes??) Djankov was adamant the reduced cigarette sales in the country in 2010 are not the result of intensified contraband.

The Minister pointed out that a second probe is conducted in the Varna case, adding the Bulgartabac management is to remain unchanged.

On Friday, Djankov announced that the contraband cigarettes in question had been produced at the Blagoevgrad factory of Bulgartabac.

According to the Minister, the reduced sales are triggered by the fact consumers stockpiled on cigarettes similarly to 2007 when the tax and prices went up because Bulgaria became an EU member state. The second reason, stated by Djankov, is the crisis making some smokers to turn to the use of pipes and cut tobacco.

The trend of lower sales had begun in 2008 as result of the economic crisis. “The crisis can be a good thing when it leads to less smoking,” the Minister commented.

When asked if he is supporting the proposal of his ruling Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) party to not introduce a full smoking ban in the country in June 2010, Djankov replied: “The less the smoking, the better for Bulgaria's economy."

Reference: Bulgaria Finance Minister: Less Smoking Is Good for Economy, Novinite.com (Sofia News Agency), 2/22/2010.

Bulgaria related news briefs:
Bulgaria - govt to weaken full smoking ban to be effective June 1, 2010..;
Bulgaria - do producers support contraband cigarettes??;
Bulgaria - sale of Bulgartabac coming - selection of a consultant..;
Greek Farmers Renew Bulgaria Border Blockade..;
Bulgaria - leadership of tobacco fund to be replaced..;
Bulgaria - illegal trade in cigarettes will reach 40% of total trade in 2010..;
Bulgaria - limits on personal imports of tobacco products from outside the EU..;
Bulgaria - European Commission authorizes payment to tobacco producers for 2009 crop..;
Bulgaria -two cigarette smuggling attempts busted on Serbian border..;
Bulgaria - price of cigarettes increases..;
Bulgaria - Bulgartabac stays in the economy ministry, sold by middle of 2010, starting price 100,000,000 euro..;
Bulgaria - tobacco producers propose Bulgartabac transfer..;
Bulgaria - government, tobacco growers reach subsidy agreement..;
Bulgaria - start of steps leading to the privatization of the state-owned cigarette monopoly Bulgartabac..;
Bulgaria - police hold smoking protest over lack of bonuses..;
Bulgaria - police busts major cigarette contraband ring..;
Bulgaria - Bulgartabac Holding” will be privatized in 2010..;
Bulgaria - MPs Impose Hefty Fines on Cigarette Sales Violators..;
Bulgartabac Chief - cigarette tax increase as of January 1, 2010..;
Bulgaria Bulgartabac Holding Sells 23% of Shares to Mutual Funds..;
Bulgaria - more than 70% of smokers want to quit..;
Bulgaria - cigarette taxes going up each year except 2011..;
Bulgaria - chair of the economic committee in parliament disapproves of planned raise in excise duties on cigarettes..;
Bulgaria and others - smoking ban, increased cigarette taxes, smuggling..;
Bulgaria - Cigarette excise duties will be increased next year..;
Bulgaria - cigarette contraband, government loses BGN 920M yearly..;
Bulgaria - one third of the tobacco products sold are illicit..;
Bulgaria - new government to speed-up Bulgartabac sale..;
Bulgaria - Fake Victory Light cigarettes..;
Bulgaria's tobacco monopoly may be up for sale..;
Bulgarian lawmakers vote to ban smoking in all publc places from June 2010..; Bulgarian tobacco company Sofia-BT exports increase by 541 percent..;
Does Russia own Bulgaria's tobacco monopoly, Bulgartabac..;
EU percent of adults smokers -highest Greece 1 , Bulgaria 2.. - lowest Slovenia..;
Bulgaria - 1 in 3 youths smoke / half of pregnant women smoke..;
PMI training Bulgarian custom officers to stop cigarette smuggling..;
Philip Morris International (PMI) was truly happy they had been back in the Bulgarian cigarette market for a year and had already had 6.8% of market..;
WHO FCTC Protocol to Prevent Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products Won't Be Completed Until End of 2010..;
WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2008..;
Bulgaria Enters 2009 with Cigarette Prices Hike...
Bulgaria is marking Tuesday, November 10, 2009, the 20th year since the internal coup at the Bulgarian Communist Party which led to the crumbling of the communist regime..

0 comments: