A notice was released by China's State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and the State Administration for Market Regulation on November 1, 2019, ordering makers and sellers of e-cigarettes to close their online shops and remove any related online ads for stricter tobacco control among teenagers.

In addition, an offline regulation is being implemented as well. In Shenzhen, a major producer of e-cigarettes in Guangdong Province, south China, the local government has regulated the product as tobacco. Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province in east China, has also made it clear that e-cigarette vaping should be controlled. Some retailers have been ordered to stop selling e-cigarettes or have their licenses revoked.

China has emerged as the world's largest producer and exporter of e-cigarettes. In 2018, its total e-cigarette export was 30 billion yuan ($4.3 billion), according to the Electronic Cigarette Industry Committee under the China Electronic Chamber of Commerce. A report from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that young people in China are the biggest e-cigarette smokers.

At least 98 countries around the world have issued regulations to control e-cigarette. Among them, 32 have specific regulations on nicotine content, 35 have restrictions on the sale of all or parts of e-cigarette products, and six have completely banned the use of e-cigarettes.

A national standard for e-cigarettes is under review and is to be issued in the near future. Many players within the industry have already taken action in the face of industry reshuffling. Sales agents will be bound by contracts not to sell e-cigarettes to teenagers. Some brands are changing the packaging of their products, highlighting information like the nicotine content, the damage to the human body and risks like explosions, liquid permeation and burns.

(This is an edited excerpt of an article originally published in China Financial Weekly on December 23, 2019)