Recent sources confirmed an estimated 500,000 master cases every month arriving in Brazil from Paraguay.
This increased from 400,000 and is more than likely caused by the recent closure by Receita Federal of several Brazilian cigarette producers.
Ironically, the closure has not benefitted the local suppliers but has migrated rapidly to Paraguay.
While Brazil insists on a disproportionately high tax burden for cigarettes in comparison to its neighbours this is likely to continue.
The Brazil market is estimated to be around 150 billion cigarettes 60 billion of which now come from Paraguay.
That’s an estimated 7 billion Reais in lost tax revenue.
