A file photo of an Egyptian man smoking a cigarette (Photo: AP)
Egypt's Eastern Company for Tobacco revealed on Sunday that it has produced a total of 83 billion cigarettes in the 2016-17 fiscal year, compared to 80 billion in the previous fiscal year, Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported.
According to financial report sent by the company to the Egyptian stock market today, its sales in the local market totaled EGP 36.7 billion in 2016-17, compared to EGP 28.5 billion in the previous year.
Exports, meanwhile, reached EGP 103.5 billion in 2016-17, compared to EGP 66.6 billion in 2015-16.
While the revenue figures show an increase in terms of Egyptian pounds, the gains in real terms must factor in the devaluation of the Egyptian pound at the end of 2016. In January 2016, the US dollar was valued at around EGP 8, while in January 2017, it cost EGP 18, due to the Egyptian government's decision to devalue the currency.
The company has also produced 16,800 tons of sheesha tobacco during 2016-17, less than the 17,600 tons of the previous year.
The company's overall production for 2016-17 totals EGP 37.8 billion, an increase on the EGP 31.6 billion from 2015-16.
Around 20.2 percent of Egyptians over the age of 15 are smokers, according to figures for 2016 released by state-run statistics agency CAPMAS.
Of Egypt's total population of 93 million, an estimated 12.6 million people are smokers, according to the data. The over-15 age group represents approximately 62 percent of the total population.
Around 23.8 percent of those aged 25 to 44 are smokers.
The average annual spend on smoking for households where all members smoke is EGP 3,968, with an average monthly spend of EGP 331.
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