China has raised the tax on cigarettes: what's next?

The Chinese government raised tobacco tax on 10th May 2015, 10 years after the ratification of the WHO Framework Convention on tobacco control. The increase in the resulting tax rate as a percentage of the retail price from 49% to 56% is still relatively low compared to the WHO-recommended benchmark, which is about 70% of the retail price. Therefore, ample room remains for the Chinese government to further increase the tax on cigarettes. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.