I just looked at the biggest tobacco companies and I am surprised at how concentrated this market really is. The top players are earning truly astronomical sums here, while the rest hardly stand a chance.

The crazy thing is: China National Tobacco simply sits on a golden throne with 40% of global production, but the figures are not publicly available. When looking at the largest publicly traded tobacco companies, Philip Morris and British American Tobacco lead the charts — both with over $140 billion and $90 billion in market capitalization, respectively. PMI is particularly interesting because they are heavily investing in IQOS and smoke-free alternatives.

Altria and Japan Tobacco are also quite large, but the gap to the giants is getting bigger. What fascinates me: even smaller players like KT&G or Swedish Match are still making solid profits. ITC from India is interesting because they not only produce tobacco but are also active in food and hospitality.

The largest tobacco companies in the world remain profitable as ever despite all the discussions about health and regulation. The data is from 2021, but the market dynamics haven't changed much since then. It's interesting to observe how these giants maintain their profits despite shrinking markets in industrialized countries.