Sri Lanka Tobacco monopoly volumes, revenues drop

Nov 10, 2013 (LBO) - Revenues at Sri Lanka's Ceylon Tobacco Company dropped in the September 2013 quarter from a year earlier amid multiple tax hikes showing that demand for the addictive product is not as inelastic as earlier envisaged.

But the state this time as not been able to gain as much taxes as hoped for with turnover based taxes declining in absolute terms quarter over quarter.

During the nine months to September the Ceylon Tobacco said it had contributed 48.5 billion rupees to the state, which was a 0.

7 billion rupee increase.

The firm said it had increased sales of Dunhill branded premium cigarettes 9 percent in volume terms which brought it wider margins.

Profits for the September 2013 quarter was flat at 2.



33 billion rupees, barely changed from 2.30 billion a year earlier. In the June 2013 quarter the firm reported earnings of 2.

8 billion rupees up from 2.4 billion rupees a year earlier.

The firm reported earnings of 12.46 rupees per share. For the nine months to September the group reported earnings of 35.34 rupees per shares.

In the September 2013 quarter, the group said revenues dropped to 21.

0 billion rupees from 21.6 billion rupees amid price rises and weak economic conditions that brought an 11 per