British firm eyes Chinese smokers
Take me away, mom Animals on the Road	“Water Margin” on eggs Cat the occupier Adorable animals pose like stars Cuddle up together, battling against blizzard Sunshine in the life

 

China is the world's biggest market for tobacco. [Photo: ThinkStock]

By Rupert Reid for sino.uk

A British firm has struck a deal which could see it expand in the Chinese tobacco market.

Reuters reports that Imperial Brands has made the partnership with China National Tobacco.

Imperial, which is headquartered in Bristol, owns the Embassy, Gauloises, John player and Superkings brands amongst others, which are well known in Europe.

The company manufactures in excess of 320 billion cigarettes in 51 factories around the world. Until now, however, it had only had a small impact on the massive market in China.

The new partnership will create a new company - Global Horizon Ventures Limited, which will be based in Hong Kong.

That company will aim to boost the profile of Imperial's West and Davidoff cigarettes in China, as well as the Chinese Jade and Horizon brands overseas.

There are more than 300 million smokers in China, who between them smoke an estimated 2.5 trillion cigarettes every year.

Tobacco products are not currently subject to heavy duties in China, as they are in much of the rest of the World. However, there is growing demand from healthcare professionals to do more to tackle the problems of smoking-related illnesses.Perhaps anticipating extra taxes or anti-smoking policies in the future, Global Horizon Ventures Limited will also be targeting users e-cigarettes, which are a less dangerous alternative to the real thing.

Author： 　　　Source：CRI　　　 Editor：Yang Fan