The predominant factor influencing the tobacco industry today is the 

 steadily increasing consumption of cigarettes, particularly the American-type 

 blend, throughout much of the world. Its effects are apparent, not only in the 

 increasing production of cigarette-type tobaccos for domestic consumption in 

 many developing areas, but also in the export and import trade of cigarette 

 tobaccos. 



UNITED STATES IMPORTS OF UNMANUFACTURED TOBACCO 



From earliest colonial times, tobacco has been one of the United States 

 most important agricultural export commodities. It is currently exceeded in 

 export value only by wheat, corn, and soybeans. In the beginning the overseas 

 trade in tobacco was of such major importance that export statistics represent 

 the only apparent record of production from 1618 to 1788. Since 1870 tobacco 

 exports have never fallen below 200 million pounds and have often been above 

 500 million pounds. 



The total value of all United States unmanufactured leaf and products 

 exported in 1971 was $683 million, making a significant contribution to the 

 overall U.S. balance of trade. 



The United Kingdom was for many years the most important individual mar- 

 ket for U.S. leaf tobacco, but the quantity and percentage going there has 

 declined in recent years. The European Economic Community — a trade union 

 comprised of Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, and Belgium-Luxembourg — 

 is currently the major market area for U.S. tobacco, taking around one- third 

 of U.S. leaf exports. The Common Agricultural Policy within the Community, 

 which provides price supports and purchase incentives for domestic production 

 and trade preferences for associated countries, is expected to have a signi- 

 ficant impact on U.S. tobacco trade in the near future. The enlarging of the 

 Common Market to include the U.K., Ireland, and other countries will have an 

 additional bearing on our future exports. Other important markets are Sweden, 

 Denmark, Switzerland, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, and South 

 Vietnam. Mainland China was an important market until 1948 when trade was 

 halted. The recent resumption of trade with this country is not expected to 

 produce any immediate benefits for U.S. tobacco growers. 



All types of leaf produced in the United States enter into the export 

 trade but flue-cured tobacco is the predominant type exported. This type cur- 

 rently accounts for more than 80 percent of total leaf exports. Exports of 

 burley leaf , the second major type in U.S. production, is also used in blend- 

 ed cigarettes in a number of foreign countries, and about 8 to 10 percent of 

 this type is normally exported. Fire-cured tobaccos led in production and ex- 

 ports during the 19th century and until World War I. The extraordinary ex- 

 pansion of cigarettes has sharply reduced the demand for these types and a 

 gradual decline continues. 



Figure 44. -Tobacco being loaded for export at a North Carolina terminal. — ►- 

 Both hogsheads and containers are shown. bn-39169 



