FTC Releases Reports on Cigarette and Smokeless Tobacco Sales and Marketing Expenditures for 2018

The number of cigarettes that the largest cigarette companies in the United States sold to wholesalers and retailers nationwide declined from 229.1 billion in 2017 to 216.9 billion in 2018, according to the most recent Federal Trade Commission Cigarette Report.

The amount spent on cigarette advertising and promotion decreased from $8.64 billion in 2017 to $8.40 billion in 2018. Price discounts paid to cigarette retailers ($6.15 billion) and wholesalers ($1.05 billion) were the two largest expenditure categories in 2018. Combined spending on price discounts decreased from $7.38 billion in 2017 to $7.21 billion in 2018, accounting for 85.8 percent of industry spending.

According to the 2018 Smokeless Tobacco Report, smokeless tobacco sales decreased from 130.9 million pounds in 2017 to 128.4 million pounds in 2018. The revenue from those sales rose, from $4.20 billion in 2017 to $4.37 billion in 2018.

Spending on advertising and promotion by the major manufacturers of smokeless tobacco products in the U.S. decreased from $718.3 million in 2017 to $658.5 million in 2018. As with cigarettes, price discounts made up the two largest spending categories, with $312.2 million paid to retailers and $101.1 million paid to wholesalers. Combined spending on price discounts totaled $413.2 million—or 62.8 percent of all spending in 2018, down from the $438.5 million spent in 2017.

The Commission has issued the Cigarette Report periodically since 1967 and the Smokeless Tobacco Report periodically since 1987.

The Commission vote to issue the reports was 5-0. (The staff contact is Michael Ostheimer, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 202-326-2699.)

The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition, and protect and educate consumers. You can learn more about consumer topics and file a consumer complaint online or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357). Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, read our blogs, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.

IR Press

Recent Posts

Treasury Issues Final Rule Expanding CFIUS Coverage of Real Estate Transactions Around More Than 60 Military Installations

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury), as Chair of the Committee…

4 days ago

U.S. Department of the Treasury’s CDFI Fund and Federal Housing Finance Agency Collaborate to Bolster CDFI Access to Capital

WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) and…

4 days ago

Report on U.S. Portfolio Holdings of Foreign Securities at Year-End 2023

Washington – The findings from the annual survey of U.S. portfolio holdings of foreign securities…

5 days ago

READOUT: U.S. Department of the Treasury Hosts Roundtable Discussion on the Financial Sector’s Response to Recent Hurricanes

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury hosted a roundtable on October 30 with…

5 days ago

READOUT: Sixth Meeting of the Financial Working Group Between the United States and the People’s Republic of China

WASHINGTON – The United States and the People’s Republic of China held the sixth meeting…

5 days ago

Treasury Sanctions Key Members of La Linea, a Group Involved in Trafficking Fentanyl into the United States

WASHINGTON — Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned…

5 days ago