Italy to increase tobacco prices in 2023

Smokers in Italy received some bad news as tobacco products will experience a price hike in 2023. The reason for this is due to a revision included in the 2023 budget law, which aims to reshuffle consumption taxes between different products through changes in taxes.

As we mentioned earlier, tobacco product users can expect to see a hike in the prices of their vice in 2023. According to the latest developments, a provision increasing the specific consumption tax on cigarettes has been approved by the executive branch led by President Meloni in the 2023 Budget Act. Starting January 1st, 2023, each pack of cigarettes will see a price increase of €0.20 (approximately RMB 1.48), with varying degrees of increment depending on the brand.

But that's not all. In 2024, the increase in cigarette prices will continue, with an additional raise of 0.10 or 0.15 euros after the growth in 2023. In other words, starting in 2024, cigarettes may cost an extra 35 cents (about 2.24 yuan) per pack.

In 2023, the growth is not only targeted at cigarette users, but also affects those who use electronic cigarettes, such as heated tobacco. However, for this type of cigarette, the increase in price is relatively small, with non-nicotine cigarettes costing approximately 0.08 euros per milliliter (about 0.59 yuan), while nicotine-containing cigarettes will rise to 0.13 euros (about 0.96 yuan).

The government's recent estimate projects that Italy could collect at least 100 million euros annually as the price of cigarettes and tobacco is set to increase by 2023.

It has been announced that cigarettes and tobacco will increase in price in 2023, but what will their prices be in 2021, with the introduction of the euro? The official website of the State Monopoly Agency for Customs and Excise has released a list of cigarette prices, including all brands available to the public, updated as of November 24th of this year. We can see that in 2022, a pack of cigarettes will cost between 4.8 and 6 euros.

Considering the rise in cigarette and tobacco prices in 2023, lower-priced cigarette packs may need to cost 5 euros, while higher-priced packs could even cost 6.20 euros. But what were cigarette prices in 2001? At that time, MS cost 2.17 euros, Camel increased to 2.48 euros, and the most popular brand, Marlboro, was priced at 3 euros. In short, over the last 20 years, cigarette prices have increased by more than 2 euros.

Let's take a look at who will spend more money next year in Italy, as cigarettes and tobacco prices are set to increase in 2023.

According to data analysis from Epicentre ISS, we can estimate that Italian regions will spend more money on cigarette and tobacco packaging next year due to the Meloni government's plan to increase prices in 2023, based on a two-year period from 2020-2021.

In Italy, where do people smoke the most? Among the regions with the highest smoking rates, the top ranking is held by certain areas in central and southern Italy, particularly Abruzzo, Umbria, and Campania, but there are also significant numbers of smokers in Emilia-Romagna.

On the contrary, in 2023, the regions of Puglia, Marche, Calabria and Friuli-Venezia Giulia will be less affected by the increase in cigarette and tobacco prices.

Data from the Istituto Superiore di Sanità reveals that in Italy, 50% of the population does not smoke, while 24.5% have a habitual consumption of cigarettes.

With the awareness that cigarettes and tobacco will increase in price in 2023, let's take a look at how much revenue the country generates from cigarette sales. In this scenario, data from 2020 from the demographic analysis institution, Eurispes, reveal that the country collects approximately 14 billion euros yearly from cigarette sales.

However, it is important to note that if we consider the expenses borne by the country itself on an annual basis to support public health measures, prevent and treat diseases related to tobacco consumption, the net profit is actually half of this figure, approximately 7 billion euros.