The price should be "hiked by at least 2,000 won per pack to 4,500 won," he said in a meeting with reporters at the Government Complex in Sejong City Tuesday.
The price hike will help reduce the country’s smoking rate, Moon said, noting that the ministry’s “Health Plan 2020” calls for cutting the nation’s smoking rate among men from the current 44 percent to 29 percent.
South Korea’s cigarette prices are only one-third of an average US$6.4 per pack for member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the minister said, adding that the prices have been frozen since 2008.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
