According to a new report from the Cigar Association of America (CAA), premium cigar imports from January through May of 2022 are up compared to the same time period in 2021. From January to May 2022, the CAA estimated that a total of 176.9 million premium cigars were imported into the U.S. This number represents an increase of 3.2 percent over the 139.5 million cigars that were imported into the U.S. during the five months of 2021.
Nicaragua once again came out on top as the top cigar producing company with an impressive 97.9 million cigars imported into the U.S., accounting for 55 percent of all cigar imports from January through May of this year. Coming in second was the Dominican Republic with 47.3 million cigar imports, accounting for 26.7 percent of all U.S. cigar imports. Honduras’ cigars made up 17.4 percent of cigar imports with its 30.8 million cigars. Other countries saw a modest bump in imports, including Costa Rica and Mexico, and the Bahamas. Cigars imports from the Philippines fell this year compared to 2021 numbers.
It’s still yet to be determined whether or not 2022 will beat out 2021’s record in terms of import numbers. According to the CAA, an estimated 456 million cigars were imported into the U.S. last year, an amount that exceeded expectations and that has not been seen since the 1990s during the Cigar Boom.
The CAA uses data provided by the U.S. Customs Service, U.S. Census Bureau and cigar manufacturers to compile its report.
For the latest new from Cigar Association of America, visit cigarassociation.org.
