Sales of cigarettes in South Korea rose for the second month in a row in April despite the government's push to print graphic health warning on the outside of packages, government data showed Friday.
Some 305 million 20-pack cigarettes were sold last month, up from 282 million packs sold a month earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.
Cigarettes for sale at a convenience store (Yonhap)
Monthly sales had been on a decline in the beginning of the year, with 280 million packs sold in January and 238 million packs in February, as the South Korean government intensified its anti-smoking campaign in late 2016. Pictures of damage caused to internal organs by smoking have been placed on the upper part of all cigarette packs.
But sales made a turnaround in March and surpassed the 300 million line in April as a growing number of people give up their New Year's resolve to quit smoking, the ministry said. (Yonhap)