According to data published on Thursday by Novel Research, the black market for cigarettes in Romania grew by 3.4 percentage points (pp) in July this year, reaching almost 14 per cent of total consumption, compared with 10.5 per cent in May.
This growth in the black market is the most significant in the last ten years.
“The highest share of the black market at regional level was recorded in the south, at 19.5 per cent. In terms of product origin, Bulgaria accounts for 26.9 per cent, followed by duty-free shops (29.7 per cent), whilst the share of products of unknown origin stands at over 20 per cent, having increased by 16.4 percentage points. Smuggling originating from the Republic of Moldova continued to fall in July by 4.9 percentage points, to 10.2 per cent,” said Marian Marku, Managing Director of Novel Research, in a statement.
Antonio Venchesla, Director of Corporate Affairs and Communications at JTI in Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Bulgaria, estimated that with an annual smuggling rate of 13.9 per cent, the loss to the budget amounts to approximately €700 million.
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