Smoking Around the World
Ah, economic development ... what's not to love? While one generation toils in fields, cigarettes barely eking out a living, the next generation manages to send its kids to school, and the following generation owns its own homes, complete with televisions and garages.
Here's one more thing that seems to come with economic development: smoking. According to The Wall Street Journal, big tobacco companies are aiming squarely at developing countries, where populations are increasing and smoking is a status symbol. The Journal states that companies are "developing and promoting new products, such as shorter cigarettes, to attract new customers and to adapt to tobacco restrictions that are already in place."
Check out the numbers of cigarettes that Philip Morris, a division of Altria, sold in 2006:
* U.S./Canada: 184 billion
* Asia Pacific: 197 billion
* Eastern Europe: 229 billion
* Western Europe: 242 billion
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