World Tobacco Development Report 2023 (below)

2023, Altria Group's cigarette sales volume will drop significantly. South Korea Tobacco Company has been effective in expanding its international market. The performance of Indonesia's Sanbaolin Company and Indonesia's Salt Warehouse Company will be greatly affected by tax increases. India Tobacco Company, Vietnam National Tobacco Company and Thailand Tobacco Administration have all achieved good operating results. Egypt's Eastern Company's production and sales volume will decline after the Egyptian government released the tobacco production license.

the world's tobacco production has stabilized and prices have risen. Except for China, the world's flue-cured tobacco production has increased by 1.949 million tons (38.98 million tons), Brazil and Zimbabwe's tobacco production has increased, the U.S. tobacco production has continued to decline, and the performance of Universal and Pexus International tobacco companies has improved significantly.

Overview of the development of some tobacco companies

(I) Altria Group

Altria is a tobacco company focused on the U.S. market. At the end of 2023, the Company had total assets of $38.57 billion and a total market capitalization of $69.59 billion.

2023, the company's net income was $20.5 billion, down 0.9 percent year-over-year; profit was $11.55 billion, down 3.1 percent year-over-year; profit margin was 56.3 percent; and tobacco taxes were $3.98 billion.

in the field of cigarettes, the sales volume of cigarettes in the United States has entered a downward channel since the 1980 s. The consumption tax on cigarettes has increased significantly in the past 20 years. The rapid rise of new tobacco products such as e-cigarettes and nicotine bags has led to the continuous shrinkage of the US cigarette market. According to statistics, the size of the U.S. cigarette market fell 8% year-on-year in 2023. In 2023, the company sold 1.527 million cartons of cigarettes, down 9.9 percent from the same period last year; its market share in the United States was 46.9 percent, down 1 percentage point from the same period last year; Marlboro (Marlboro) sold 1.376 million cartons, down 8.8 percent from the same period last year, and its market share in the United States was 42.1 percent, down 0.4 percentage points from the same period last year. The market share of high-end cigarettes in the United States is 58.8, an increase of 0.6 percentage points. The company raised prices four times in a row throughout the year, Marlboro by $0.63 per box. In the cigar sector, 1.78 billion cigars, represented by mechanism cigar brand Black & Mild, were sold, up 2.8 year on year. In the field of traditional mouth tobacco, Copenhagen sold 0.44 billion cans and Skoal sold 0.16 billion cans, down 6.5 percent and 9.1 percent year-on-year, respectively. In the field of nicotine bags, nicotine bag brands on! Maintain the upward momentum, sales of 0.11 billion cans, up 38.6, accounting for 22% of the U.S. nicotine bag market.

March 2023, Altria entered into an equity transfer agreement with JUUL Labs in exchange for a portion of JUUL's intellectual property rights. In May 2023, Altria settled JUUL-related litigation for $0.235 billion million, avoiding at least 6000 cases related to JUUL. Altria Group did not give up on entering the field of new tobacco products because of the failure of investment JUUL. They acquired e-cigarette company NJOY for $2.9 billion in June 2023. NJOY is currently the only electronic cigarette manufacturer in the United States that has passed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) license for electronic cigarettes and disposable electronic cigarettes. After NJOY was acquired by Altria Group, its e-cigarette market share increased to 3.7 percent. Altria Group uses its channel advantages in cigarette sales to rapidly expand the sales scope of NJOY e-cigarettes. In addition, patent litigation was initiated against JUUL and a lawsuit was filed against 34 illegal disposable e-cigarette manufacturers, distributors and online retailers.

Altria Group released its 2028 corporate development goals, proposing financial targets such as earnings per share and debt ratio for 2028 to maintain its dominant position in the U.S. tobacco sector and invest in innovative smoke-free tobacco products. The company plans to increase sales of smokeless tobacco products such as cigarettes by at least 35% from 2022 by 2028, doubling revenue to $5 billion, of which $2 billion will come from innovative smokeless tobacco products such as nicotine bags. The company is committed to long-term growth, actively entering the heated cigarette and e-cigarette markets while participating in international competition in the nicotine pouch market; entering the non-nicotine products field, and at least five products can be widely sold by 2028.

(II) South Korea Tobacco Company

South Korea Tobacco Company is the largest tobacco manufacturer in South Korea, and its long-term goal is to become the fourth largest multinational tobacco company in the world. At present, the company is mainly engaged in diversified businesses such as tobacco, red ginseng health products and real estate. Tobacco business accounts for more than 60% of the company's revenue and more than 80% of its profits. Tobacco products are exported to 143 countries and regions. At the end of 2023, the company's tobacco business had total assets of 7021.73 billion won (1 won is about 0.005 yuan) and a total market value of 11629.2 billion won.

2023, the company sold 2.155 million cartons of cigarettes and heated cigarettes, up 6.4 percent year-on-year. Net income from tobacco business 3619 billion won, up 1.3 percent from the same period last year, of which cigarette revenue accounted for 77.8 percent and the next generation of tobacco products revenue accounted for 21.5 percent. International revenue accounted for 38.7 of its total revenue. Profits from tobacco business 977.1 billion won, down 3.2 percent from the same period last year.

In the field of cigarettes, in 2023, the company sold 813000 cases in South Korea and China, down 1.1 percent from the same period last year, with a domestic market share of 66 percent, an increase of 0.6 percentage points over the same period last year. Sales in the international market were 1.063 million cases, up 7.7 percent from the same period last year, of which 646000 cases were exported from home, down 1.1 percent from the same period last year, and 417000 cases were sold by overseas subsidiaries, up 25 percent. In the field of next-generation tobacco products, the company's main business is heating cigarettes. Faced with the continuous growth of South Korea heated cigarette sales, Lil Hybrid 3.0 will be released in 2023, continuing to maintain its leading position in the South Korea heated cigarette market. The sales volume of heated cigarettes in the whole year was 114000 boxes, up 14.4 percent from the same period last year, and the market share was 46.6 percent, down 0.9 percentage points from the same period last year. After signing a strategic cooperation agreement with Philip Morrison International in 2020, its heated cigarettes will enter the international market, with sales of only 11000 cases in 2020 and 165000 cases by 2023.

's main cigarette brands are Esse, Pine, The One, Arirang, This, Zest, etc. Esse is the company's number one cigarette brand. Data show that in 2023, Esse sold 1.016 million boxes, including 438000 boxes South Korea domestic and 578000 boxes internationally. Esse was launched in November 1996 and has ranked first in domestic cigarette sales in South Korea for 20 consecutive years since 2004. In the international market, Esse is currently sold in more than 90 countries and regions, accounting for about 1/3 of the world's ultra-fine cigarette sales. Esse has sold around 18.032 million cases worldwide since its launch.

2023, the company signed a 15-year export contract with Philip Morrison International to further promote the expansion of the international market for heated cigarettes Lil. The contract stipulates to provide heating cigarette equipment such as Lil Solid, Lil Hybrid, Lil Able and special heating cigarette sticks Fit, Mix, Aim and so on to Philip Morrison International; Philip Morrison International will sell these products to larger heating cigarette markets such as EU and Japan outside South Korea. Compared with the first cooperation between the two sides in 2020, this contract determines the minimum purchase quantity of heated cigarettes and strengthens the stability of cooperation. It is agreed to study and review the sales performance in a three-year cycle and flexibly respond to changes in the heated cigarette market. Break the previous binding of all heated cigarette innovation platforms to determine the sales target, requiring each platform to sign a contract in a five-year cycle.

2023, the company held the "KT & G Future Outlook" activity, announced the goal and blueprint of becoming a global "Top Tier" enterprise, and put forward the growth strategy of cultivating cigarettes, next generation tobacco products and health care products as three core businesses, increasing the sales revenue from 5.9 trillion won in 2022 to more than 10 trillion won in 2027, increase the proportion of non-cigarette business (next-generation tobacco products, health products) sales revenue to more than 60%, and increase the proportion of international market sales revenue to more than 50%. In the domestic market, priority is given to ensuring production capacity; in the international market, it is committed to building new factories and strengthening the competitiveness of local self-operated business. In 2023, the company started construction of a tobacco manufacturing plant in Kazakhstan as a central point for the growth of the Eurasian business. It also announced that it will build a second tobacco manufacturing plant in Indonesia, which will further expand the Southeast Asian market in the future.

(III) Indonesia Sanbaolin Company

Indonesia is the world's leading tobacco producer and marketer. Only about 5% of Indonesian cigarette consumption is ordinary cigarettes, the rest are clove cigarettes, of which nearly 70% are mechanism clove cigarettes and the rest are handmade clove cigarettes. The Indonesian tobacco market is mainly controlled by Sambolin, Salt Warehouse, Djarum and British American Tobacco, which together account for more than 3/4 of the Indonesian tobacco market.

Sanbaolin Company was founded in 1913 and acquired by Fimo International in 2005. Fimo International currently holds 92.5 per cent of the company's shares through Fimo Indonesia. Headquartered in Surabaya, East Java Province, Indonesia, the company currently has 7 production plants, including 2 production mechanisms for clove cigarettes, 4 production of handmade clove cigarettes, and a smoke-free innovative product production plant that will be put into operation in 2023. In addition, it also produces handmade clove cigarettes through 38 third-party partners. Fimo International also established Fimo Vietnam Tobacco Company Vinataba through a joint venture between Sambolin Company and Vietnam National Tobacco Company, which holds 49% and 51% of the shares respectively.

company include Sampoerna A, a low-tar mechanism clove cigarette that was established in 1989 and currently ranks first in Indonesia's tobacco market, Dji Sam Soe, which was established in 1913 and is known as the "king of clove cigarettes", and Sampoernea kretek, which was established in 1968. In addition, the company launched the mechanism clove smoke Marlboro Filter Black in 2016 and the manual clove smoke Marlboro Crafted in 2020. The company has been selling Marlboro brand cigarettes for Fimo International since 1984. Since 2019, IQOS clubs have been established to test the heated cigarette market. In 2023, Philip Morse International heated cigarette IQOS ILUMA and heated cigarette TEREA have been introduced in several major cities, and heated clove cigarettes under the TEREA brand have been introduced. At present, IQOS has attracted consumers' 1.5 million in Indonesia. In 2023, the company's smoke-free innovative products factory was officially completed. The factory is the first smoke-free tobacco product production factory of Philip Moro International in Southeast Asia. It has already started exporting HEETS heated cigarettes. The company also built and put into operation a laboratory with advanced testing and analysis facilities, focusing on the research and development of smoke-free innovative products.

sells cigarettes through 109 regional branches, sales offices and distribution centers across the country, has established a dedicated organization called Retail Communities (SRC) to support retail stores, and has now expanded the partnership to 243000 retail stores. At the same time, the company has established an offline and online retail store digital business ecosystem, and more than 90% of its cooperative retail stores have been digitized.

2023, Indonesia's weighted average tobacco tax rate increased by 11% and widened the tax gap between first-grade cigarettes and other-grade cigarettes, leading many consumers to choose lower-grade cigarettes and hand-made cigarettes, and sales of high-grade cigarettes continued to decline. It is estimated that the total sales of all types of cigarettes in Indonesia decreased by about 4% year on year. In the face of operating pressure, the company strives to stabilize the sales of high-end mechanism cigarettes, expand the sales of cigarettes in other stalls, and seize the opportunity of recovery of the handmade clove cigarette market by expanding cooperation with third parties. In 2023, the company sold 1.668 million cartons of various cigarettes, down 3.9 percent year-on-year; sales revenue (including tax) 116 trillion rupiah (1 rupiah is about 0.0004 yuan), up 4.3 percent year-on-year; profit 10.3 trillion rupiah, up 24.6 percent year-on-year; and tobacco tax 69.2 trillion rupiah. The company has maintained its leading position in Indonesia's tobacco industry since 2006 and will have a 28.6 percent share of the domestic tobacco market in 2023.

(IV) Indonesia Salt Warehouse Company

salt warehouse company was founded in 1958, the main tobacco business, also involved in the airport and other transportation infrastructure and real estate business. The company has two main production plants, one printing plant and eight commercial subsidiaries. At the end of 2023, the Company had total assets of 92.5 trillion rupiah and a total market capitalization of 39.1 trillion rupiah.

, Indonesia's tobacco consumption tax will rise for five consecutive years starting from 2020. In 2023, macroeconomic pressure will lead consumers to spend cautiously. In order to maintain the profit level, the company will further raise prices. This led to a 25.6 per cent year-on-year drop in cigarette sales to 1.228 million cases last year and a 21.2 per cent market share in Indonesia, down 4.3 per cent year-on-year. The company's full-year revenue 119 trillion rupiah, down 4.6 percent year-on-year, of which tobacco business accounted for 88.7 percent. The company's profit 7.4 trillion IDR, up 90.3 percent year-on-year, due to improved gross profit in the tobacco business and increased returns from infrastructure revenue, as well as a good control of costs and expenses through 10.2 percent layoffs.

(V) Egyptian Eastern Company

Egyptian Eastern Company was founded in July 1920 and listed on the Egyptian Stock Exchange in 1995. The company is currently in the tobacco business, as well as food, real estate and other investment businesses. From fiscal year 2022 to 2023, the company's total assets 26.3 billion Egyptian pounds (1 Egyptian pound is about 0.15 yuan) and its total market value 47.59 billion Egyptian pounds. Net income 17.96 billion Egyptian pounds, up 4.8 year on year. Profits 7.43 billion Egyptian pounds, up 82% year on year; Pay various taxes and fees to the government to 54.75 billion Egyptian pounds.

United Tobacco Company UTC (Philip Moro International and Egyptian Eastern Company hold 76% and 24% respectively) won the Egyptian cigarette manufacturing license in 2022, which is the second cigarette manufacturing license in Egypt besides Eastern Company. As a result, Philip Moro International no longer entrusts Eastern Company to process and manufacture cigarettes, intensifying market competition. From fiscal year 2022 to 2023, the company produced 1.28 million cartons of cigarettes, down 27% year on year. In Egypt, 1.2 million cartons of cigarettes were sold, down 14% year on year, Cleopatra queen soft brand cigarette sales accounted for more than half of the company's total cigarette sales. 20000 cartons of cigarettes were exported, up 46% year on year. 100000 cartons of cigarettes were processed on commission, down 74% year on year.

March 2023, Egypt and UAE Global Investment Holdings reached an agreement, the latter for $0.625 billion to buy Egypt Chemical Holdings held 30% of the shares of Oriental Company, the agreement provides that the buyer will also provide $0.15 billion to buy the materials needed to produce tobacco products. Egyptian Chemical Holdings retains a 20.9 percent stake in Eastern and continues to contribute as a strategic investor to the development of the tobacco industry, market stability and workers' rights. The Egyptian government said the share sale was part of the government's plan to sell shares in 35 state-owned enterprises, in line with Egypt's ownership policy and demonstrated the government's determination to encourage direct investment from the private sector.

(VI) Indian Tobacco Company

tobacco use in India is 28.6 per cent among people aged 15 and over, cigarettes are not the mainstream of tobacco consumption in India, which accounts for only 2 per cent of the world's cigarette consumption and only 4 per cent of Indian adults smoke. According to WHO estimates, 69% of the world's 0.35 billion smokeless tobacco users are in India. Research by the Indian Tobacco Research Institute shows that legal cigarettes account for only 9% of the country's total tobacco consumption, and the remaining 91% are basically other cheaper tobacco products, including bidi, hookah, chewing tobacco, snuff, etc. The share of legal cigarettes in total tobacco consumption in India fell from 21 per cent in 1981-1982 to 9 per cent in 2021-2022, while total tobacco consumption in the country increased by 50 per cent over the same period, indicating a greater shift towards illicit cigarettes and other cheaper tobacco products.

India Tobacco Company is a diversified enterprise, mainly engaged in fast-moving consumer goods (including food, daily necessities and cigarettes, etc.), hotel industry, agriculture (including tobacco), paper industry and packaging, information technology services, etc. The company is the largest cigarette manufacturer in India, and its cigarette sales account for nearly 80% of domestic legal cigarette sales. Cigarette brands include Gold Flake, Wills, Scissors, etc.

, the company's tobacco business achieved net income of 282.07 billion Indian rupees (1 Indian rupee is about 0.087 yuan), an increase of 20.3 percent year-on-year, accounting for 40.6 percent of the company's total net income; profit 179.27 billion Indian rupees, an increase of 20.6 percent year-on-year, accounting for 76.3 percent of the company's total profit.

(VII) Vietnam National Tobacco Company

Vietnam has the highest smoking rate in the world, with 44.3 percent of adult men smoking. Vietnam to implement the tobacco monopoly, the country has a total of 6 main tobacco business companies. Vietnam National Tobacco Company was established in 1985. It is the largest of the six tobacco companies in the country. It is also the only tobacco company in Vietnam with comprehensive development of various tobacco businesses, covering tobacco agriculture, industry and commerce, and linking production, supply and marketing, and domestic and foreign trade. The company has a nationwide distribution network and employs more than 8000 people.

The company's main cigarette brands are Vinataba series, Saigon series, ERA, DuLich, Th-ng Long, etc. Cigar brands include HANOS, LOTUS, VINABOSS'S, etc.

2023 is considered to be the most difficult year since the company was founded. In the face of various pressure challenges such as rising costs, declining purchasing power of residents, and large-scale sales of smuggled cigarettes and new tobacco products in the market, the company has carried out efficiency-themed competitions among member units to strive to improve quality and efficiency, stabilize production and operation, and exceed the target plan. In 2023, 1.76 million cartons of cigarettes will be sold, exceeding the plan by 7%, with an estimated domestic market share of nearly 64%. Total revenue 30.2 trillion Vietnamese dong (1 Vietnamese dong is about 0.0003 yuan), exceeding the plan by 10%; Profits 1.8 trillion Vietnamese dong, exceeding the plan by 29.4. Nearly 14 trillion Vietnamese dong was handed over to the country, more than double the plan.

Since 2009, in addition to production and commercial activities, the company has implemented a 2008 government resolution to target poverty alleviation programs in two poor areas of the country.

(VIII) Thailand Tobacco Authority

The Tobacco Authority of Thailand is a state-owned enterprise under the Ministry of Finance of Thailand. As of September 30, 2023, the Thai Tobacco Authority had total assets of 22.74 billion baht (1 baht is about 0.2 yuan) and a total of 2235 employees.

Tobacco Administration of Thailand cigarette brands include Knight, Line, Goal, SMS, Wonder S, Krongthip 90, Failing Rain 90, Tuk Tuk, etc., and hand-held cigarette brands include Line, etc.

In response to the government's reform of cigarette consumption tax, the Thai Tobacco Authority has formulated a long-term strategic plan divided into three stages: adjustment (fiscal year 2018-2021), stabilization (fiscal year 2022-2023) and recovery (fiscal year 2024-2027). In the 2023 fiscal year, they actively responded to challenges such as rising raw material prices, intensified competition from imported brands, and the prevalence of illicit cigarettes and new tobacco products prohibited by Thai law, and basically achieved the expected stable development goals. In the whole year, 281000 cartons of cigarettes were sold (of which 95.7 per cent were sold for a single pack of cigarettes priced at no more than 72 baht), up 5.3 per cent year-on-year and accounting for 51.4 per cent of Thailand's legal cigarette market. For the whole year, sales revenue (including tax) was 40.68 billion baht, up 5.1 percent from the same period last year. Taxes and funds paid totaled 34.23 billion baht, and net profit was 0.22 billion baht.

Tobacco Production and Management

(I) Brazilian Tobacco

the tobacco planting season from 2022 to 2023, the number of tobacco farmers in Brazil continued to decline, but the area, output and purchase price of tobacco planting increased. According to data from the Brazilian Bureau of Geography and Statistics and the Brazilian Association of Tobacco Growers (Afubra), during the 2022-2023 tobacco planting season, a total of 12 states in Brazil planted tobacco leaves, a decrease of 1 state from the previous planting season; 138000 tobacco farmers, a year-on-year decrease of 2.9%, 552000 people directly employed; tobacco planting area of 4.261 million mu, an increase of 5.2% year-on-year; tobacco leaf production of 635000 tons, the output per mu is 148.9kg; the average purchase price is 3.57 US dollars/kg, an increase of 7.2 percent over the same period last year; and the total income of tobacco farmers is 2.26 billion US dollars, an increase of 15.3 percent over the same period last year. According to data from the Foreign Trade Secretariat of the Brazilian Ministry of Economy, Brazil will export 416000 tons of tobacco leaf in 2022, with export revenue of US $2.24 billion.

(II) Zimbabwe Tobacco

tobacco is an important pillar industry in Zimbabwe, creating about 25% of agricultural added value. Export earnings are second only to gold, accounting for 21% of Zimbabwe's export revenue. According to Zimbabwe's national development strategy (2021-2025) and vision 2030, the government has proposed a "tobacco value chain transformation strategy" to increase the annual output of tobacco leaves to 300000 tons by 2025. Extend to the lower reaches of the tobacco industry chain, expand the export of high value-added tobacco products, and increase the output value of the entire tobacco industry to US $5 billion. In the 2022-2023 season, Zimbabwe's total tobacco production reached a record high and is close to achieving the 2025 development goal. Data from Zimbabwe Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) show that during the 2022-2023 tobacco planting season, Zimbabwe registered 148000 tobacco farmers, up 9.0 percent year-on-year. Tobacco yields reached 295000 tons, up 38.9 percent year-on-year. The average purchase price was US $3.03/kg, down US $0.03 from the previous planting season. The total income of tobacco farmers from growing tobacco was US $0.89 billion, up 37.5 percent year on year. In 2023, Zimbabwe exported 236000 tons of tobacco, with an average export price of US $5.24/kg and an export revenue of US $1.24 billion, of which 110000 tons were exported to the Far East, with an average export price of US $7.12/kg and an export value of US $0.79 billion.

(III) American Tobacco

According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the area of tobacco planted in the United States reached 12.894 million acres in 1930, and it was reduced to 2.625 million acres by the beginning of this century. In the past 20 years, it has been reduced by half. At present, the United States tobacco planting is mainly concentrated in the southeast of North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina, Pennsylvania seven states. In 2023, the planting area and output of tobacco in the United States continued to decline. The planting area of tobacco leaves was 1.139 million mu, down 5.4 percent from the same period last year, including 838000 mu of flue-cured tobacco and 191000 mu of burley tobacco, and 196000 tons of tobacco, down 1.2 percent from the same period last year. Among them, the output of flue-cured tobacco is 143000 tons and that of burley tobacco is 29000 tons.

(IV) Worldwide

Universal is the world's leading supplier of tobacco and a fast-growing supplier of plant ingredients, with eight tobacco plants (two in the United States, one in Brazil, one in Malawi, one in Mozambique, two in the Philippines and one in Zimbabwe) and four plant ingredients plants.

company performance in the 2020 fiscal year fell into the trough, for three consecutive years of steady recovery. In fiscal year 2023, it continued to maintain its leading position in the tobacco field, while expanding and strengthening its plant ingredients platform, with operating results exceeding pre-epidemic levels, with operating income, profit and net profit of $2.57 billion, $0.18 billion and $0.13 billion, respectively, up 22.2 percent, 12.9 percent and 25.7 percent year-on-year, respectively.

in flue-cured tobacco and burley tobacco, in the past five years, the company's procurement and processing volume accounted for about 25% to 35% of Africa's production, 35% to 45% of the United States production, and 15% to 25% of Brazil's production. In the case of aromatic tobacco, it operates in Bulgaria, Greece, North Macedonia and Turkey through its participation in Socotab of the world's leading aromatic tobacco companies. In fiscal year 2023, the company's tobacco sales increased and prices rose. The operating income of the tobacco business accounted for 87.9 of the company's operating income, the profit of the tobacco business accounted for 95.5 of the company's profit, and the profit margin of the tobacco business was 7.7. Fimo International, Imperial Brands and British American Tobacco are among the top three customers, accounting for 20.4, 19.0 and 12.8 percent of the company's tobacco business revenue, respectively.

realized that its tobacco business has limited room for growth and needs to find a new way out for future development. Since 2018, they have continuously invested and developed their plant ingredients business, mainly providing raw fruit and vegetable juices, concentrated juices, dehydrated products, plant extracts and condiments to food and beverage manufacturers. In fiscal year 2023, the company continued to integrate the three previously acquired companies to promote business synergy. Increase investment in sales and research and development resources, strengthen and expand the plant ingredients business, and drive the increase in sales revenue. The plant ingredients business achieved sales revenue of US $0.31 billion and profit of US $0.01 billion for the whole year.

(V) Pexus International

Pexus International came from the bankruptcy and reorganization of Lianyi International three years ago and has a history of more than 150 years of tobacco management. The company operates in more than 30 countries and has contractual relationships with 300000 tobacco farmers, including nine tobacco plants (two in the United States, two in Brazil, one in Argentina, one in Malawi, one in Tanzania, one in Zimbabwe and one in Indonesia). 65% of the company's tobacco is purchased from Brazil, Turkey and Africa, and 31% and 12% of the tobacco is sold to Europe and the United States.

fiscal year 2023, in the face of geopolitical tensions, inflation, bad weather and other challenges, the company's operating performance increased significantly, tobacco sales increased, profit margins increased, profit, debt, cash flow and other indicators have improved significantly. For the whole year, the operating income was 1.91 billion US dollars, up 16.8 percent year-on-year; the profit was 0.09 billion US dollars, up 124.9 percent year-on-year; and the net profit was -0.04 billion US dollars, down 52.4 percent year-on-year.

, the company's tobacco sales revenue was US $1.81 billion, up 18.3 percent from the same period last year; tobacco sales were 388000 tons, up 1.8 percent from the same period last year; average sales price was US $4.67/kg, up 16.2 percent from the same period last year; average cost was US $4.06/kg, up 16.7 percent from the same period last year; and gross profit was US $0.61/kg, up 13% from the same period last year. In addition, the company's tobacco processing business revenue of $0.09 billion, e-cigarettes and other agricultural products and other business revenue of $0.01 billion.