Tobacco company Philip Morris International Inc. plans to leave the Russian market before the end of the year. The CEO of the company, Jacek Olczek, spoke about this in an interview with Bloomberg Television.
He noted that the withdrawal from Russia will definitely not happen earlier, as it is "a rather complicated process": "We are working hard to complete our presence in Russia, but I do not think that this will happen within the next quarter."
Philip Morris produces cigarettes such as Marlboro, L&M, Bond Street, Chesterfield and others. After the start of the war unleashed by Vladimir Putin against Ukraine, the company announced that it was reducing Russian production and suspending investments in Russia. At the end of March, Philip Morris announced that it could transfer Russian assets to another owner.
According to Olchek, the Russian market is the seventh largest for Philip Morris, and the share of its tobacco products in it is 27%.
In total, since February 24, after the start of the war against Ukraine, more than 1,000 companies have left Russia. Among them are Microsoft, Netflix, McDonald's, Johnson & Johnson, H&M and others.
