DUBAI - Smokers in Saudi Arabia spend some 8 billion riyals ($2.13 billion) on cigarettes every year, local daily Arab News reported on Monday, citing a report.Around six million people smoke in the kingdom, equating to a quarter of its population of around 24 million, the newspaper reported.
About 70 percent of smokers are men, while 20 percent are teenagers and the remaining 10 percent women, the paper said.
As many as 13 billion cigarettes are imported into Saudi Arabia every year, with each smoker going through 2,000 cigarettes, the paper said, making the kingdom the world’s fourth largest consumer of cigarettes.
Smoking-related diseases kill at least 33 people every month, the paper said, adding there are currently 2,350 cases of lung cancer in the kingdom.