Madrid (EFE).- The sale of cigarette packs in 2022 reached 2,182.5 million units, 4.09% more than in the previous year but 2.69% less than in 2019, the last pre-pandemic course, The Tobacco Table reported this Friday in a statement.
In 2021, the sale of packs (of 20 cigarettes per unit) was 6.5% lower than the data prior to 2019 but they already showed a recovery compared to 2020, the central year of the pandemic, growing by 1.7%.
The sale of cigarette packs represents 83.8% of the market in value of the tobacco market in Spain.
Regarding the rest of the work, the commercialization of cigars -which represents 4% of total sales in value- suffered a drop of 1.3% in 2022 compared to the previous year and accumulates a drop in volume of 8.3% in relation to 2019.
Sales of rolling tobacco -which are equivalent to 9.6% of the market in value- totaled almost 6.5 million kilos in 2022, 4.44% more than in 2021 and 8.04% more than in 2019.
Almost 1.9 million kilos of pipe sting were sold in 2022, 6.60% less than in 2021 and 46.35% more than in 2019.
value sales
Regarding turnover, tobacco sales in Spain totaled 12,021.9 million euros in 2022, 6.1% more than in 2021 and 1.3% more than in 2019, the last year before the pandemic.
The sector has managed to stabilize in relation to the data prior to the health emergency after two years affected by the drop in tourism and the change in social habits, which dropped to record lows in 2020.
That year sales in value fell by 8.46%, to 9,338.2 million euros.
In 2021, sales grew by 2.35% compared to 2020 but were still almost 5% below the pre-pandemic data.
The recovery of 2022 is influenced by the good tourist season, with an increase of 24% in sales in volume of cigarettes that occur in this area, which in the case of the Balearic Islands increased by more than 40%, has analyzed the Tobacco Bureau in a statement.
The tax collection derived from the taxes that apply to all tobacco products (excise duties and VAT) remained stable compared to 2019 (+0.2%) and grew by 5.5% compared to 2021, up to the 9,113.4 million euros, in a sector in which, on average, the tax burden accounts for around 80% of the retail price (RRP).
The improvement in tax revenues was in turn favored by the good work of the State Security Corps and Forces in the fight against illicit trade, with a boom in illegal tobacco factories in Spain in recent years, has targeted the Tobacco Table.
In this sense, it has reported that throughout 2022 at least 19 clandestine factories have been dismantled, detecting in some cases networks with more than one facility and mobile factories.