China Tobacco Import-Export Co. renamed China Tobacco International Co., Ltd.

Source from:  China Tobacco magazine 12/03/2007

China Tobacco Import-Export (Group) Co. – the foreign trade arm of China National Tobacco Corporation – has recently been renamed China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. with the approval of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA), on the basis of structural reform meant to substantively build the capacity of China's tobacco industry to develop international markets. On October 10-11, the STMA – the regulator of China's tobacco industry – held a symposium in Beijing on internationalization of China's tobacco industry, which has been the first of its kind since the approval of the renaming of China Tobacco Import-Export (Group) Co. by both the STMA and China National Tobacco Corporation. In a written instruction to the conference, STMA Director-General Jiang Chengkang said that the establishment of China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. signified a substantive step taken by the tobacco industry of China in the process of structural reform, systemic conversion and reorganization, which contributed to providing an organizational guarantee for the realization of its strategy to develop greater international markets. Whether China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. will be able to play a leading role in conducting foreign trade on behalf of China's tobacco industry in a next period of time will be a key step decisive to whether the tobacco industry of China will succeed in developing greater international markets, according to Jiang. In an address to the conference, STMA Deputy Director-General Li Keming said that the leading role China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. could play would be embodied in the following four respects: 1. Overall planning: Presently, as the tobacco industry of China is still in an initial stage of developing international markets, overall planning will be of vital importance. In this respect, it is essential to prioritize key projects, develop a rational structure of markets, implement development strategies step by step and make progress in an effectively way. Overall planning will contribute to enabling China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. to play a leading role in terms of organization, guidance, coordination, etc. As correct choice and determination of market areas is of great significance in international competition, it is essential to define key target markets in which breakthrough could be made and in which great business development could be achieved. 2. Effective restructuring and redistribution of resources: In face of intense competition at international markets, it is essential to make headway and breakthrough. In particular, it is essential to exert all efforts of China's tobacco industry to develop international markets, and have the whole tobacco industry strive to develop international markets instead of having enterprises separately operate foreign trade. China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. needs to restructure and redistribute its resources, including human resources, resources of State-issued annual production or sales quotas and resources of high-quality raw materials, for the development of both domestic and international markets. For example, in terms of restructuring and redistributing resources of State-issued annual production or sales quotas, the STMA is studying the formulation of effective policies for encouraging the development of international markets, intended to combine efforts for the development of domestic markets with efforts for the development of international markets. In reality, some tobacco manufacturing enterprises have been granted extra quotas for sales in domestic markets in reward. 3. Establishment of platforms: Before the renaming, China Tobacco Import-Export Co. used to spend most of its energy on internal management and coordination of its import-export system and organization and management of general trade. Today, China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. needs to make a change in this respect by giving priority to the development of international markets, and promoting the development of international markets through substantive operations. Specifically, it needs to establish a series of platforms for strengthening exchange, coordination, operation and management with overseas enterprises, strive to turn them into platforms for promoting the development of international markets, and provide support for operations by overseas enterprises. 4. Substantial operation: In terms of substantial operation, it is of foremost importance to accelerate substantial operation for leaf tobacco import. Along with rapid development of China's tobacco industry, and also along with steady development and expansion of key competitive cigarette brands, Chinese tobacco manufacturers will have greater demand for the supply of imported high-quality leaf tobacco. Substantial operation for leaf tobacco import is intended to keep increasing the proportion of leaf tobacco directly imported. Meanwhile, efforts should be made to strengthen whole-process management over the purchase, supervised processing, grading, etc of leaf tobacco. It will be impossible to fulfill the strategy for developing international markets in just a single action. Therefore, it is essential to make preparations for long-term development. Along with the establishment of China Tobacco International Co., Ltd., China's tobacco industry has actually taken a great step in the development of international markets. With China Tobacco International Co., Ltd. as its leading player in foreign trade, with Chinese tobacco manufacturers as its principal part, and with close cooperation and development of resultant forces between them, the tobacco industry of China will certainly succeed in practically making progress in the development of international markets in future, according to Li. Enditem