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• Taipei, Tokyo Are Most Affordable Cities for Smokers (Update1) 

Cigarettes were most affordable in Taipei and Tokyo, according to a worldwide study that found tobacco taxes aren't high enough to deter smoking in more than half of the 60 cities surveyed.

The study compared cigarette prices with median incomes to determine affordability. In New York, Seoul, Amsterdam, Rome and 30 other cities, affordability was ``high,'' according to the study by Ming-Yue Kan, a researcher at the Committee on Youth Smoking Prevention in Hong Kong. Cigarettes were least affordable in Kiev, Beijing and Shanghai.

``Most cities within high-income economies have a high cigarette affordability level,'' said the study, published in the journal Tobacco Control this month. ``As the newly emerging economies approach high income levels, immediate measures should be taken to avoid a duplication of the experiences of their predecessors. Tax increases should be given high priority.''

Tobacco is the world's second-biggest cause of death

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