“Indeed, despite an uncertain outlook in Ukraine, we anticipate an acceleration in Europe adjusted IMS growth in the second half.”

In context

“each 12.9 billion on a four quarter moving average. As expected, adjusted in market sales growth of plus 6.8% was lower than in Q1 due to higher comparison and the initial impact of the characterizing flavor ban, notably in Italy. Growth excluding Italy was close to 10%. The impact of the ban is progressing in line with our prior estimate in the majority of markets, though the implementation in Italy during Q2 was slightly more pronounced than anticipated. This was primarily driven by earlier sell-through of affected SKUs and concurrent pricing. It is important to note, this is a transitory dynamic and I'm pleased to report a recovery in markets such as Greece, Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Romania where the ban was implemented previously following an initial period of consumer adjustment. Indeed, despite an uncertain outlook in Ukraine, we anticipate an acceleration in Europe adjusted IMS growth in the second half. This is supported by the planned step-up in commercial activity behind IQOS, including the introduction of DELIA and LEVIA HTUs to an increasing number of markets. Another illustration of our continued progress in Europe is in our key city offtake share. Strong gains in city with already high IQOS adoption such as Budapest, Bucharest, Bratislava, Lisbon and Sofia; and historically slower growth markets such as Madrid, London and Amsterdam, highlight the enduring growth potential in the region. Japan demonstrated impressive IQOS growth in the quarter, with adjusted HTU IMS growth of plus 12.5%, representing the seventh consecutive quarter of double-digit progression. Adjusted IMS volumes continued to grow sequentially, reaching 10.5 billion units on a four-quarter moving average. Total tob”