US cigar market loses celebrity status

摘要

A lot of people are saying that cigar smoking may be in serious long- term decline, given the way con- sumption has been decreasing in the US. It seems true that US consumption has dropped sharply in recent years but, as Mr Chris Boon, the premium cigar manager at British American Tobacco, points out, reliable figures are difficult to find. "You draw your own conclusions and arrive at an estimate," he said. Based largely on anecdotal evidence, Mr Boon reckons that the consumption of premium cigars in the US has fallen from 450m in 1998 to less than 200m last year, and he says that this is the major factor behind an overall 'marginal' decline in the global market.