Annual report 2004 (English) - PDF 3546K - Imperial Tobacco

Spain
The Spanish market also posted a decline, but not as
sharp as in France because it was not subject to the same
tax pressures. In 2004, Altadis held its drop to 10% in a
segment that shed 9.5% in sales volume. Price increases,
however, enabled the dark-cigarette segment to maintain
its profi tability, with revenues rising by 1.1%.
Pipe and rolling tobacco:
a growing market
France
The French pipe and rolling tobacco market benefi ted
from the switch of certain consumers from cigarettes to
rolling tobacco because of price hikes. This trend was
strong at the beginning of the year but moderated over
time, resulting in higher overall sales volume of 1.1%,
with rolling tobacco gaining 17.1% and pipe tobacco
off 14.3%. Altadis, the market leader with a 28.6%
share compared with 31.4% in 2003, increased its
sales volume by 2.5%, including a 15.7% rise in rolling
tobacco sales thanks to the development of its brands.
Ducados, the third-ranking brand in Spain for combined
blond and dark cigarette sales, is the leader in the dark
segment with a 77.6% market share that was one point up
on 2003. The brand’s revenues rose by 2.1%.
Spain
Although the Spanish market had been showing strong
growth over the past few years, it is still relatively
small. Volume rose by 24.4% in 2004 and represented
close to 2,400 metric tons, 93% of which was for
rolling tobacco and 7% for pipe tobacco. As in France,
the market was driven by sales of rolling tobacco,
which rose by 26%, while pipe tobacco sales shrank
by 7%. Altadis’ sales moved in the opposite direction
of the market, however, posting a gain of 21.8% in
pipe tobacco, with a market share of 20.8%, and a 1%
decline in sales of rolling tobacco, where its share fell
more than a percentage point, to 5.2%
29