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UPDATE 2-NORDIC STOCKS – Factors to watch on June 24

June 25, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

June 24 (Reuters) – The following stocks may be affected by newspaper reports and other factors on Thursday:

SAS (SAS.ST)(SAS.CO)(SASNOK.OL)

Scandinavian airline SAS’ Deputy CEO John Dueholm said that passengers are coming back. “The traffic figures show that the market is about to turn. Not overall, but we see the beginning of an upturn, especially on intercontinental routes to Asia and the United States, but also on certain routes in Europe, particularly to big cities like London, Frankfurt, Munich and Paris,” Dueholm said, according to Danish daily Jyllands-Posten. “When you see the traffic figures for June, you will not be disappointed.”

For more on the company, double click on [SAS.ST], [SAS.CO] [SASNOK.OL]

H&M (HMb.ST)

The clothing giant reported second quarter results roughly in line with forecasts in Reuters poll and said cold weather had hit same-store sales in May.

H&M’s March-June pretax profit was 7.0 billion Swedish crowns ($905.5 million) versus a mean forecast of 7.1 billion in the poll.

May sales in comparable units fell by 4.0 percent compared to the same month last year.

For more on the company, double click on [HMb.ST]

SWEDISH MATCH (SWMA.ST)

Tough credit markets mean it is tough for companies to find affordable long-term financing, the chairman of the tobacco products firm told daily Dagens Industri.

Connie Karlsson said difficulties in financing had meant Swedish Match had not been purchasing its own shares as it normally does.

“We have a rolling mandate from the board, but we also have a clear financial policy in the company,” Karlsson said. “We haven’t made so many repurchases recently because it is hard to find good financing.”

The paper said the company had not bought back any of its own shares since early May, which is the month in which the company pays its dividend.

For more on the company, double click on [SWMA.ST]

** For a summary of upcoming results and forecasts, double click on [NORD/EQTY]

** For the western European company diary covering earnings, shareholder meetings, news conferences and analysts’ meetings, click on [WEU/EQUITY] or type in the code and hit the f9 button.

** Double click on <0#.INDEX.ST> for Swedish indices, <0#.INDEX.CO> for Danish indices, <0#.INDEX.HE> for Finnish indices and <0#.INDEX.OL> for Norwegian indices

** For real-time moves on Nordic blue-chip indices double click on .OMXS30, .OMXH25, and .OBX

** For constituent stock moves highlight the above codes in the command box and press the f3 button on your keyboard

** For Nordic top news items, double click on [TOP/NORD]

** For the latest news on Nordic stock price moves double click on [HOT-NORD-RTRS]

(Additional reporting by Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm newsrooms) (Helsinki Newsroom; +358-9-6805-0244) ($1=7.750 Swedish Crown)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 24 June, Ceo John, Clothing Giant, cold weather, Comparable Units, credit markets, Deputy Ceo, Double Click, Hmb, Jyllands Posten, Karlsson, Newspaper Reports, Pretax Profit, reuters poll, Scandinavian Airline, Swedish Crowns, Swedish Match, tobacco products, Traffic Figures, upturn

Russia may double minimum vodka price

June 10, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – Russia is considering doubling the minimum price of a bottle of vodka to 200 roubles ($6.30) and the excise tax on filtered cigarettes to 590 roubles ($18.67) per 1,000 units by 2013.

World | Russia

President Dmitry Medvedev last year ordered tough measures to curb alcohol abuse in a country where the average Russian drinks 18 liters (38 pints) of pure alcohol each year.

In January, Russia raised taxes on beer and introduced a minimum vodka price of 89 roubles per half liter, effectively doubling the cost of the cheapest bottle.

Now the Finance Ministry has proposed increasing the minimum price to 120 roubles in 2011, 160 roubles in 2012 and 200 roubles in 2013, local news agencies quoted deputy minister Sergei Shatalov as saying on Wednesday.

“Vodka should not be cheap, it is not a product of first necessity,” Shatalov said, according to Itar-Tass.

The Ministry also plans to increase the excise tax from current 250 roubles per 1,000 filtered cigarettes by 44 percent to 360 roubles in 2011, 460 roubles in 2012 and 590 roubles in 2013, said the draft amendment to the tax code, seen by Reuters.

The sharp increase in excise tax will force buyers to switch to cheaper tobacco and may increase the amount of bootleg in Russia’s tobacco market, corporate director at Philip Morris in Russia Aleksei Kim said.

“Excessive tax increase may add to inflation, especially at the time, where the buyers’ income drops,” he said.

The tax on the filtered cigarette is now 40 percent, according to Kim.

The Russian tobacco market is almost completely taken by three global players: Japan Tobacco, Philip Morris Int and British American Tobacco.

The tax on tobacco products has more than doubled in the past four years. During that period, prices on cheap cigarettes grew more than 80-85 percent from 8-9 roubles per pack in 2007 to 15-16 roubles in the middle of 2010, according to director of corporate relations of British American Tobacco Russia Alexander Lyutyi.

EXTRA CASH

The extra cash would be useful as the government faces years of budget deficits after Russia weathered its worst recession in 15 years in 2009.

However, analysts at VTB Capital were skeptical about the proposal’s effectiveness and its chances to become reality.

“In our view, there is little threat for vodka producers of consumption declining since market consolidation would accelerate: minor regional players, which just about break even, would go out of business leaving a handful of strong and profitable companies,” they said.

“However, we believe that any sharp increase in the spirits tax would most probably result in a dramatic increase in the production of illegal alcohol and tax collections would fall.”

The proposal could face a tough slog to secure approval from the government and parliament, given the strength of Russia’s alcohol producers’ lobbying power, VTB Capital said.

With elections looming in 2011-2, that may increase the reluctance to adopt the potentially unpopular measure.

(Reporting by Maria Plis and Toni Vorobyova; writing by Nastassia Astrasheuskaya and Toni Vorobyova; Editing by Louise Heavens)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Alcohol Abuse, Aleksei, British American Tobacco, Cheap Cigarettes, Corporate Director, deputy minister, dmitry medvedev, Draft Amendment, Excise Tax, Finance Ministry, global players, itar tass, Japan Tobacco, News Agencies, Philip Morris, pints, reuters, Russian Tobacco, Tobacco Market, tobacco products

Japan unveils world”s first smoke-free ciggie

May 18, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

London, May 18 (ANI): Japan”s largest cigarette manufacturer has unveiled what it claims is the world”s first smoke-free cigarette.

Zerostyle Mint, brainchild of Japan Tobacco Inc., was created in response to increasing restrictions on smoking, reports The Telegraph.

The company hopes that the product will catch on among people who want to smoke but do not want to disturb others with second-hand fumes.

The product resembles a regular cigarette but contains a replaceable cartridge that holds ground tobacco leaves. The cigarette emits no smoke.

“While the majority of consumers in Japan are smoking cigarettes, demand is increasing for tobacco products designed to be used in places where consideration needs to be given to those nearby,” the company said in a statement. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: brainchild, Cigarette Manufacturer, cigarette smoke, ciggie, consumers, Japan Free, Japan Tobacco, Japan Tobacco Inc, London, Mint, Replaceable Cartridge, Smoke Free, Smoking Cigarettes, Telegraph, tobacco products

”Safe” ciggies as hazardous as tobacco

May 13, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Washington, May 13 (ANI): Tobacco-free cigarettes may be more carcinogenic by actually inducing more extensive DNA damage than tobacco products, a team of researchers has found.

In the study, researchers found that cigarettes made without tobacco or nicotine may be more carcinogenic because they actually induce more extensive DNA damage than tobacco products.

The research team was led by Zbigniew Darzynkiewicz, M.D., Ph.D., professor of pathology. Their study, “DNA damage response induced by exposure of human lung adenocarcinoma cells to smoke from tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes,” will appear in the June 1 issue of Cell Cycle.

Using laser scanning cytometry (LSC) technology to measure DNA damage response to the smoke from commercially available tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes, the research team expected to find the alternative products were less hazardous than regular tobacco cigarettes.

However, their data suggest that exposure of cells to smoke from tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes leads to formation of double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs). Since DSBs are potentially carcinogenic, the data indicate that smoking tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes is at least as hazardous as those containing tobacco and nicotine.

The authors conclude that their methodology to assess the potential carcinogenic properties of tobacco smoke, based on measurement of DNA damage response as assessed by LSC, provides a useful addition to the battery of genotoxic tests for probing cigarette smoke hazards. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Alternative Products, cells, cigarette smoke, Dna Damage Response, Dna Research, Double Strand Dna, free cigarettes, human lung, Lung Adenocarcinoma, measurement, methodology, nicotine, pathology, Smoking Tobacco, Study Dna, study researchers, Tobacco Cigarettes, tobacco products, tobacco smoke, Zbigniew Darzynkiewicz

J-K Govt launches drive to enforce ban on smoking

May 4, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Srinagar, May 4 (ANI): The Jammu and Kashmir Government has launched a drive in Srinagar to enforce a ban on smoking.

The drive was to ensure that smoking does not take place at public places and selling of cigarettes and other tobacco products is prohibited near educational institutions.

A team of district officials, headed by Srinagar Deputy Commissioner Mehrajuddin Kakroo inspected various offices and hospitals in the city.

The team comprising government officials from various departments and members of Jammu and Kashmir Voluntary Health Association fined several offenders and informed them about the ill effects of smoking.

“The main aim of starting this drive was to spread awareness among people. To tell people that cigarette smoking in public places is harmful for health. That is why we have started this drive with the administration and the voluntary health association of India,” said Syed Hashim, a member of Jammu and Kashmir Voluntary Health Association.

“In my opinion it is a great move and I believe that if this drive continues like this, then very soon the environment here will be neat and clean,” he added.

Offenders were fined Rs 200 each and cigarettes and tobacco products worth thousands seized and later put to flames in presence of the media in Srinagar.

Cigarettes were also confiscated from shopkeepers, who were selling the products within 100 yards of an educational institution especially schools.

“In this drive, the district administration, police, health professionals, drug officers, NGOs, voluntary health associations are jointly working on this together. The aim behind this is to create awareness so that they leave smoking,” said Kakroo, another member of the Jammu and Kashmir Voluntary Health Association.

The locals are hailing this move and feel that if successfully implemented this drive can lead to a smoke-free environment.
“This is a very good step taken by the government. There is no doubt about it. Every time we travel in a car one or the other person smokes a cigarette and the others are exposed to passive smoking,” said Mansoor Ahmad, a local.

“So more than the smoker it is the passive smoker who gets affected and is harmful for them. So, in my opinion the government should take up more such initiatives,” he added.

A number of locals including senior citizens and volunteers from different organizations participated in the drive. They were seen holding placards with anti-smoking slogan.

Under Section-4 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act 2003 (better known as COTPA), smoking in public places is prohibited and any violation of this Act is punishable with a fine up to Rs 200. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Administration Police, cigarette smoking, cigarettes, Deputy Commissioner, district administration, District Officials, educational institution, educational institutions, free environment, government officials, Health Association, Health Professionals, ill effects, jammu and kashmir government, Kashmir, no doubt, smoking in public places, tobacco products, Voluntary Health Associations, worth thousands

Tobacco in candy form can lead to accidental poisoning in kids: Study

April 20, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Washington, April 19 (ANI): A study has found that a tobacco company”s new, dissolvable nicotine pellet, which resembles popular candies, could lead to accidental nicotine poisoning in children.

According to the study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), the Northern Ohio Poison Control Center, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the candy-like products could appeal to young people and lead to nicotine addiction as well.

In 2009, the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company launched a dissolvable nicotine product called Camel Orbs, which according to the company”s promotional literature contains 1 mg nicotine per pellet and is flavoured with cinnamon or mint.

The company also introduced Camel Strips (to contain 0.6 mg nicotine per strip) and Sticks (to contain 3.1 mg nicotine per strip).

It appears that the product is intended as a temporary form of nicotine for smokers in settings where smoking is banned.

However, the potential public health effect could be disastrous, particularly for infants and adolescents, said Professor Gregory Connolly, lead author of the study and director of the Tobacco Control Research Program at HSPH.

Ingestion of tobacco products by infants and children is a major reason for calls to poison control centres nationwide.

In 2007, 6,724 tobacco-related poisoning cases were reported among children five years of age and under. Small children can experience nausea and vomiting from as little as 1 mg of nicotine.

“This product is called a ”tobacco” product, but in the eyes of a 4-year-old, the pellets look more like candy than a regular cigarette,” Connolly said.

“Nicotine is a highly addictive drug and to make it look like a piece of candy is recklessly playing with the health of children,” he stated.

The researchers computed, based on median body weight, how much nicotine ingestion would lead to symptoms of poisoning in children.

A one-year-old infant could suffer mild to moderate symptoms of nicotine poisoning by ingesting 8 to 14 Orbs, 14 Strips or 3 Sticks; ingesting 10 to 17 Orbs, 17 Strips or 3 to 4 Sticks could result in severe toxicity or death.

A four-year-old child could have moderate symptoms by ingesting 13 to 21 Orbs, 14 Strips or 4 Sticks and could suffer severe toxicity or death by consuming 16 to 27 Orbs, 27 Strips or 5 Sticks.

The researchers report that a poison control centre in Portland, Oregon, a test market for Orbs, reported a case in which a three-year old ingested an Orbs pellet.

R.J. Reynolds claims that Orbs packaging is “child resistant”, but the researchers say adults could unknowingly leave the pellets out in the open where children could easily access them.

The researchers also say that the candy-like appearance and flavouring and ease-of-use of the product could appeal to children.

The study appears in an advance online edition of the journal Paediatrics on April 19, 2010 and will appear in a later print issue. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Addictive Drug, centers for disease control and prevention, centers for disease control and prevention cdc, disease control and prevention, food and drug administration, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), harvard school of public health, health effect, Nicotine Addiction, Nicotine Poisoning, Piece Of Candy, Poison Control Center, Professor Gregory, R J Reynolds, R J Reynolds Tobacco, R J Reynolds Tobacco Company, school of public health, tobacco control research, Tobacco Product, tobacco products

Tobacco in candy form can lead to accidental poisoning in kids: Study

April 19, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment