Tobacco Asia

16 tobaccoasia FRONT PAGE NEWS 卷首新闻 AI Push to Cut BAT Jobs British American Tobacco (BAT) announced a new artificial intelligence-driven productivity program that it expects will reduce its workforce, as the company reported higher annual profit driven by strong US demand for its Velo nicotine pouch and rising sales of newer products. Interim finance chief Javed Iqbal said the initiative will focus on simplifying operations and increasing automation through data analytics and AI tools. He said the changes will affect staffing levels but declined to estimate how many jobs could be cut. "It will have an impact on the size of the organization," he said during a recent conference call, adding that it remains too early to determine how much of the workforce the program will affect. The productivity push comes as BAT's Velo nicotine pouch gains market share in the US from rival products, including those from Philip Morris International and Altria Group. The company attributed the gains to features such as higher nicotine strengths and lower pricing. Chief executive Tadeu Marroco said the company sees continued growth potential for Velo in the US market. "We are extremely encouraged by the US performance of Velo," Marroco said on the call. "There is still plenty of opportunity for Velo to carry on growing." Velo now ranks second in US market share behind Philip Morris' Zyn. The product forms part of BAT's portfolio of newer offerings, which also includes its Vuse vape and heated tobacco products. The company continues to invest heavily in these categories to support future growth. BAT reported double-digit growth in revenue from new products in the second half of the year and a 7% increase for the full year through December. Adjusted earnings per share rose 3.4% to 340.5 pence (US$4.29). Newer smoking alternatives accounted for 18.2% of BAT's total sales in 2025, up from 17.5% the previous year. Marroco said performance in BAT's Vuse vape segment has improved, although unregulated products in the market continue to weigh on results. He said regulatory efforts to curb illicit vape sales have delivered modest benefits but warned that market conditions will take time to recover. The company expects US vape performance to remain flat in 2026. BAT also faces challenges in Australia and Bangladesh. In Australia, rising duties and an expanding illicit cigarette market have reduced demand. In Bangladesh, higher taxes and minimum-price rules have pressured sales. Iqbal said the Australian market will continue to weigh on the company's performance in 2026. Revenue from BAT's Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa division fell more than 7% in 2025, limiting overall group revenue growth to 2.1%, compared with 1.3% growth in 2024. Poll: Brits Reject Generational Ban Polling shows broad opposition in the UK to the proposed generational smoking ban scheduled to become law this year. Nearly two thirds of respondents—including smokers and non-smokers—oppose plans that would bar anyone born after January 1, 2009, from buying cigarettes. A survey conducted by Whitestone Insight for the Freedom Association found that only 1 in 3 Labor voters support the proposal. Under the plan, a decade from now a 27-year-old could legally purchase cigarettes, while a 26-year-old would not. The poll also found that 29% of respondents want the current law to remain unchanged, with both smoking and vaping prohib- ited for those under 18. Another 26% favor raising the legal age to 21. Reform MP Lee Anderson, who opposes the bill, criticized the policy in sharp terms. "There isn't a better example of warped political priorities than the upcoming Tobacco and Vapes Bill," he said. "While my working-class voters in Ashfield battle higher taxes, unemployment, and a soaring cost of living crisis, the Labor government pushes through a nanny-state policy originally – shamefully – mooted by the Conservatives," Anderson added. "The bid to outlaw smoking through a generational ban which will see shop assistants asking for birth certificates before selling a packet of Benson & Hedges is unenforceable and costly to the taxpayer, while fueling a fresh crop of dodgy dealing black-market [criminals]." David Campbell Bannerman, chairman of the Freedom Association, also rejected the pro- posal. "It looks like the generational smoking ban has gone up in smoke," he said. "Nearly two thirds of the public are opposed to what is an unworkable and unenforceable proposed law." "Shopkeepers, who face fines otherwise, have better things to do than quizzing middle-aged men about whether they are old enough to smoke. Yet this is where this laughable policy is leading us," he said. Bannerman also pointed to concerns over Northern Ireland. "On top of that, the Euro- pean Union is making clear that the ban is illegal in Northern Ireland because it is still subject to single market rules," he said. "Keir Starmer is good at one thing – U-turns. He should perform another one and drop the whole idea." Whitestone surveyed 2,082 UK adults online between December 12 and December 14 last year. Singapore Hikes Tobacco Excise Another 20% Singapore raised tobacco excise duties by 20% across all tobacco products starting February 12. The increase aims to discourage smoking. Excise duty applies to goods manufac- tured in or imported into Singapore. Under the new rates, duties on cigars, cheroots, cigarillos, cigarettes, and other manufactured tobacco products will rise from 49.1 Singapore cents per stick to 58.9 cents per stick, according to the Ministry of Finance. Duties on smokeless tobacco and beedies will increase from S$378 per kg to S$454 per kg. Duties on unmanufactured and cut tobacco, as well as tobacco refuse products, will rise from S$446 per kg to S$535 per kg. The higher tax will push up retail prices for cigarettes, cigars, and other tobacco products. The price of a pack of Marlboro could rise from about S$15.60 to S$17.74 . The Finance Ministry said the increase should generate about S$150 million in additional revenue each year. Govern- ment figures show tobacco duties generated more than S$1 billion annually in recent years. In a 2025 parliamentary response, senior minister of state for finance Jeffrey Siow said authorities collected S$1.11 billion in 2024, S$1.02 billion in 2023, and S$1.11 billion in 2022. The government last raised tobacco taxes in 2023, when it introduced a 15% increase that officials expected to generate about S$100 million in additional annual revenue. *S$1.00= US$0.78

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