This drop happened despite the higher tax rates slapped on these products since Jan. 1 under Republic Act No. 11346 which increased the levy on cigarettes, and RA 11467 jacking up taxes on alcohol, heated tobacco and vapes.
Last week, Dominguez said that he did not want the liquor bans lifted, but the government may exempt cigarettes from quarantine restrictions as smuggling of so-called “illicit” sticks increased after unscrupulous traders took advantage of dwindling supply of tax-paid packs. “If this ban continues, the industry can no longer survive; a situation that can affect a large sector of the community… the alcohol beverage industry bears already the agony of declining market demand due to the imposition of high excise taxes on alcohol,” Card said in an April 16 letter to Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.
“Shortly before the March 16 lockdown, intelligence reports showed that illicit traders were ramping orders from foreign sources of illicit cigarettes which cause prices of imported cheap contraband to surge to $150 per master case,” they added. Specifically, they warned that “because of its long coastline and proximity to illicit tobacco products from neighboring countries, Mindanao will be a hotbed for the resurgence of illicit trade.”
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