According to Frank Van Driessche, chief administrator of European Commission for taxes, new EU accessed countries cannot count with prolonged transitory period to reach minimal EU required level for cigarette excise taxes. Each country negotiated its own time schedule which it needs to follow.
Our view:
Czech Republic negotiated to reach EUR 64 level of taxation in 2008 and all possible scenarios sees this deadline as achievable. The initiative for prolonged transitory period comes from Latvia. We see this news as trading neutral for PMCR.