Less Odor, More Popular... Sales Surpassed 400 Million Packs Last Year
[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] Since the spread of COVID-19, social distancing measures have been strengthened, and with the increase in time spent at home due to remote work, the demand for relatively less odorous "electronic cigarettes" has been rising.
According to the "2021 Tobacco Market Trends Data" released by the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the 28th, the sales volume of heated tobacco sticks last year reached 440 million packs, a 17.1% increase compared to 380 million packs the previous year. Electronic cigarette sales were only about 78 million packs in 2017 but jumped sharply to 332 million packs the following year. Since then, sales steadily increased to 363 million packs in 2019, 380 million packs in 2020, and surpassed 400 million packs last year.
On the other hand, sales of conventional heated tobacco cigarettes have been continuously declining. Tobacco sales, which were about 3.44 billion packs in 2017, decreased to 3.21 billion packs in 2020 and further to 3.15 billion packs last year.
The rapid restructuring of the domestic tobacco market around heated tobacco products is interpreted as being influenced by the expansion of remote work and other factors after COVID-19. With more time spent at home, electronic cigarettes are relatively easy to use, and increased sensitivity to odors has also contributed to the growing demand for electronic cigarettes. An industry insider explained, "While the overall tobacco market sales have stagnated due to smoking cessation policies, preference for electronic cigarettes, which produce no ash and have relatively less odor, is increasing."
Electronic cigarettes are electronic devices designed to produce effects similar to smoking and are broadly divided into heated tobacco and liquid types. Liquid-type electronic cigarettes work by heating a nicotine-containing liquid to produce vapor for inhalation, whereas heated tobacco types use tobacco leaves like conventional cigarettes, which are steamed or heated and inhaled by contacting a dedicated stick with the device. From the smoker's perspective, the high tobacco inhalation impact and the ability to choose various heated tobacco sticks according to preference are considered advantages of heated tobacco electronic cigarettes.
Since electronic cigarettes are evaluated as relatively less harmful to the body and produce less odor compared to conventional cigarettes, the growth trend of the electronic cigarette market is expected to continue for the time being. According to Euromonitor, the heated tobacco market is projected to grow from about 37 trillion KRW this year to approximately 50 trillion KRW by 2024, recording an average annual growth rate of 16%.
Oh Kang-ho, a researcher at Shinhan Financial Investment, stated, "Global tobacco companies are conducting research and development to prove lower harmfulness compared to conventional heated tobacco cigarettes," adding, "With the smoking population decreasing, electronic cigarettes could become an important factor in changing perceptions of reduced-risk products (RRP) and will be a key point determining the competitiveness of the future tobacco market."
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