Philip Morris International operating companies income fell 23.6 per cent in the fourth quarter, driven down by adverse currency movements and reorganization costs in Europe, the Marlboro maker said.

Shipping volume declined 2.4 per cent in the quarter to 209.8 billion units. For the full year, volume was down 1 per cent, representing 8.5 billion sticks, to 847.3 billion units. “The decrease in total cigarette shipment volume reflected declines in: (Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa), principally Algeria, Russia and Ukraine, partly offset by Egypt and Turkey; Asia, mainly due to Korea, Pakistan and the Philippines, partly offset by Japan; and Latin America and Canada, mainly due to Brazil and Mexico, partly offset by Argentina. The decrease was partly offset by growth in the EU, driven notably by Germany, Italy and Poland,” PMI said.
Marlboro shipments were 0.7 per cent higher in the fourth quarter and up 0.9 per cent in 2015 to 285.6 billion sticks.
Operation companies income (OCI) at USD 2 billion in the fourth quarter represented an OCI margin of 32.4 per cent compared with 36.9 per cent in the final quarter of 2014. For the year, the OCI margin was USD 11 billion, representing 41.2 per cent of sales.