In November, the share of tobacco products from Moldova in Romania's black market of cigarettes increased by 4.4 p.p. compared to September and amounted to 23.5% - Novel Research
Romania's black market for cigarettes grew again in November, with a share of 9.1% of total cigarette consumption (vs. 8.6% in September 2024), according to data presented by the research company. According to the study, the North-East region continues to be the most affected by the illicit trade in November, although its share decreased by 3.2 p.p. to 18.1%. While on average in 2024, the share of smuggling in this region was around 20.6%. “A significant increase was recorded in November in the west, up 7.5p.p. - to 11.2%, in Bucharest - by 4 p.p. - to 10.9%, in the southwest by 3.1 p.p. to 11.6%, and in the southeast by 2.3 p.p. to 10.5%. In terms of origin of black market products, Duty Free had the largest share in November with over 27%, followed by Moldova with a share of 23.5%, up 4.4 p.p. The share of goods from Bulgaria decreased by 4.9 p.p. by the end of the year to 23.4%, while the share of the Cheap Whites segment is relatively stable compared to September at 17.7%,” said Marian Marcu, CEO at Novel Research. “The annual average of tobacco smuggling exceeds 9% of the market, and although lower than the European level (9.9%), it shows us the need for continued attention to the impact not only at the local market level, but also national security through the lens of the international implications it generates. It is an anti-record for the last 4 years in Romania, it undermines legal businesses, worsens the local economy and results in budget losses of about 2 billion lei annually,” said Ileana Dumitru, BAT's Director for Legal and External Affairs in Southeast Europe. She emphasized the serious impact of smuggling on society and said that political stability, conditions of fair competition, encouraging compliance with laws and regulations and, above all, awareness and observance of social norms are necessary to avoid the continuation of the growth of illicit trafficking. Gilda Lazar, Head of Corporate Affairs and Communications of JTI Romania, Moldova and Bulgaria, while commenting on the statistics, noted that excessive taxation and regulation are factors that can stimulate the black market, and given the budget deficit and the authorities' habit of solving problems “on their knees” and in a short period of time, it is quite possible that in 2025 the industry will become solvent again. Nevertheless, JTI will continue to support the competent authorities in the fight against smuggling. “We have just finalized a new donation for the Customs Service's canine unit: five dogs, as well as the necessary food, medicine and equipment. More than 60 dogs donated by JTI to the Romanian Customs are working at customs posts and are trained to detect weapons, drugs, cash and tobacco products,” emphasized Gilda Lazar. Roxana Pintea, Director for External Affairs at Philip Morris Romania, believes that it is necessary to intensify the discussions related to the strategy to combat illicit trade, which includes all the factors with decision-making power and which constitutes the main pillar in international discussions on this topic. “PMI will continue to contribute to Romania's development, to the consolidation of budget revenues, but above all, we will remain a reliable partner for law enforcement,” said Roxana Pintea. The Romanian Customs Authority, in its turn, said that it continues to implement strategic measures to strengthen international cooperation and modernize the customs infrastructure, and together with the customs institutions of Moldova and Ukraine, measures are taken to control the illicit trafficking of tobacco products. According to the Romanian Border Guard Service, in 11 months of 2024, the agency confiscated 2.1 million packs of cigarettes worth 41 million Romanian lei, as well as about 13.8 tons of tobacco. Romanian police reported 554 violations and 472 criminal offenses involving 690 people in the fight against cigarette smuggling. The police also charged 920 fines worth 8.1 million lei and seized almost 29 million cigarettes and almost 13 tons of tobacco (equivalent to 17.7 million cigarettes). It is worth mentioning that legal tobacco companies have transferred more than 22 billion lei to the Romanian budget in taxes and fees. //26.12.2024 - InfoMarket
