Cigarette prices increase in America but Australia still has the MOST expensive smokes in the world – but no one is giving up yet

KATE DARVALL and EMILY PIDGEON and DANIEL PIOTROWSKI
4 June 2018
DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

Price of cigarettes goes up in the US, but Australia is still more expensive

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio raised the cost of a pack of cigarettes to $13

US costs still no match for a packet of cigarettes in Australia, nearing $40

Smokers will be slugged even more for a pack of cigarettes on September 1

The price of cigarettes has gone up in the US, but Australia is still the most expensive place to buy smokes in the world.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio raised the cost of a pack of cigarettes from $10.50 to $13, the equivalent of $17 Australian dollars, to take effect this month.

With packs rising to $13, they were still no match for a packet of cigarettes in Australia after costs were pushed up to nearly $40 in this year’s Budget. 

Treasurer Scott Morrison announced smokers would be slugged even more for a pack of cigarettes on September 1 this year, in the second of four consecutive 12.5 per cent tobacco excise hikes.

The tax hike is expected to result in a price increase of about $3 for a typical packet.

Last year, the price of 30 Winfield Blues jumped $2.70 from $32.50 to $35.20.

Despite the price hikes, Australia recorded a mere 0.2 per cent drop in smokers in three years. 

Australia came in at number seven, with Iceland topping the list with a 12 per cent drop, followed by Norway at seven per cent. 

The news comes after Australia was announced as the third most expensive country in the world to buy alcohol, cigarettes and drugs. 

The average retail price for products including beers, wine, spirits, ecstasy, cannabis, cocaine and heroin is the most costly in Japan with New Zealand and Australia following closely behind. 

Per week, the average sale cost of the ‘package’ is $1,028.7 in Australia, compared to the $100 in tropical countries including South Africa and Colombia.

While laws play a part in the price of narcotics, Japan is the most expensive place in the world to purchase from with an average weekly cost of $1,366.4 followed by New Zealand at $1,241.6.