Cuban cigar sales gain impetus

HAVANA - Sales of Cuban premium cigars increased in China by 33 percent last year compared with 2016, showing China has become the main emerging market for Habanos SA, the company that commercializes the exclusive Cuban cigars.

Jose Maria Lopez, vice-president of Habanos, said in an interview that China is currently the third-largest market worldwide for the company, which saw sales of $500 million last year, or 12 percent growth.

"China is today our biggest emerging market with a potential for growth that is already materializing year-after-year. It is a market that is opening up to our products and in which we have placed high hopes of future growth," he said shortly after the opening of the 20th Habanos Festival on Monday.