FDA nicotine proposal could cost tobacco industry $165B

Morgan Stanley analysts estimate a proposed nicotine rule by the Food and Drug Administration could cost tobacco companies $165 billion in lost profits.

An FDA rule scheduled to be published in October would limit the amount of nicotine allowed in cigarettes and other tobacco products “so that they are minimally addictive." FDA officials said the rule "would have significant public health benefits” and “potentially vast economic benefits."

“Reducing nicotine in cigarettes to non-addictive or minimally addictive levels, in our view, would be a potential game changer for the U.S. industry,” the analysts wrote in a research report.

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