Women now main target of tobacco firms

BEIJING - The number of female smokers in the country may see a sharp rise as Chinese women have become the main target of tobacco companies, a government official said on Tuesday.

Li Xinhua, a division chief with the Ministry of Health's department of women, children and community health, said Chinese female smokers will probably jump by 10 percent if the government does not impose stricter control.

"Statistics suggest that by the year 2002, 3.1 percent of women were smokers in China. Without further intervention by the government, it may easily pass 15 percent in the years to come," Li said.