The Tobacco Sector in Poland vs. the Czech Republic: an Analysis of the Impact of the Global Financial Crisis

Abstract

The paper presents a summary of the problems inherent in the tobacco sector in Poland and the Czech Republic, and analyses the impact of the global financial crisis on the growth of the industry. The paper commences with a market analysis of the sector in Poland and the Czech Republic, describing the key players involved and their respective market share; we then go on to compare the sectors in both countries, analysing in detail the impact of the crisis upon them. The main part of the paper concentrates on the impact of the global financial crisis on the sector in both countries. We also present two-year forecasts regarding growth in the industry. The conclusion of the paper is that the global financial crisis did not significantly influence the sectors and that the decrease in the consumption of tobacco products was mostly the result of other factors, such as a change in lifestyle and the effects of the ‘grey’ (parallel) market.