Smuggled tobacco saturates Vietnam The high demand for tobacco in Vietnam has helped create a situation in which billions of cigarettes are smuggled into the country each year and the authorities seem unable to control the contraband.    Smuggled cigarettes bring huge profits Vietnam ranked second out of the 11 Asian countries for the consumption of illegally imported cigarettes according to the “Asia-11: Illicit Tobacco Indicator 2012”, an international study compiled by International Tax and Investment Center and its partner, Oxford Economics. According to Vietnam Tobacco Association, around 17 billion cigarettes were illegally imported into Vietnam in 2013. The amount of illicit cigarettes in the first two months of 2014 increased by 43% compared to same period last year. The head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade's Department of Market Management, Trinh Van Ngoc, said tobacco smuggling is especially alarming in border provinces near Cambodia such as Tay Ninh, An Giang and Long An. The key markets are HCM City and several provinces in the southeast and southwest regions. Ngoc said smugglers are using more and more sophisticated methods such as setting up coordinated nationwide smuggling rings, dividing cargo and hiding it in residences. They are also ready to fight law enforcement if necessary when their goods are at risk.  Even though smuggled cigarettes are not openly displayed, they are offered to customers at many restaurants and hotels. The most common method is to hide cigarettes inside, or in a neighboring house to evade inspection.  Representatives from Department of Market Management said smuggled cigarettes would often be hidden before they even acquired permits to search houses and it is impossible to legally stop vehicles for search.  By Bich Diep, dtinews.vn