Market power of the tobacco industry in Senegal
INTRODUCTION
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) adopted a new directive on the taxation of tobacco products in December 2017. The minimum rate of the ad valorem tax is now set at 50% with the removal of restrictions on the maximum rate level to be applied. A specific tax of US $ 0.02 per sticks of cigarette is associated with it. These provisions should allow a reduction in consumption through an increase in the selling prices of cigarettes. However, the success of such a reform will depend on the market power of the tobacco industry, i.e. its ability to decide whether or not to shift the tax increases on the sales price. In order to inform the political decision-making on this power that the tobacco industry can hold, CRES conducted a research entitled «Market power of the tobacco industry in Senegal». This policy brief reports the main results that emerged.