UK bucks world smoking trend

By 2010 smokers across the world will puff their way through nearly five trillion cigarettes a year, industry analysts claim. That represents an increase on the 4.6 trillion (4.6 million millions) smoked this year.

But in the UK the trend is in the opposite direction. The number of cigarettes smoked is expected to fall from an average of 1,217 per person to 802. It will put Britain 38th in the international smoking league-tables, according to Euromonitor.

South Korea is expected to top the league with just under 4,000 cigarettes per person followed by Hungary, Poland, Japan and Bulgaria.