The percentage of daily cigarette smokers declined gradually in the 15 years from 1993 to 2008, the Census & Statistics Department says.

The department's survey on smoking patterns showed there were 754,800 current smokers from December 2007 to March 2008, accounting for 13.2% of people aged 15 and above in Hong Kong.

Of them, 679,500 - or 90% - were daily smokers while the rest smoked less frequently. There were 294,000  smokers who previously had smoked every day  - 5.1% of all people aged 15 and above.

Cigarettes were the most popular form of tobacco, consumed by 99.6% of the daily smokers. There was a higher percentage of daily cigarette smokers among men than women, while daily cigarette smoking seemed to be more popular among the middle-aged.

The daily cigarette smokers had an average of 14 cigarettes in a day - about 48.4% taking one to 10 cigarettes and 46.9% taking 11 to 20 cigarettes. The figure in 2005 was 13 per day. Smokers aged 40 to 59 consumed more cigarettes than those in other age groups.

About 59.8% of the daily cigarette smokers starting smoking due to the influence of friends and 36.7% out of curiosity. Other reasons included perceived necessity in social functions, influence of family members, easing tension, refreshing one's mind and killing time.

Of the 291,800 former daily smokers, 41.3% gave up smoking for health reasons, 29.6% considered smoking not good for their health, 17.4% quit under the influence of family members or friends, and 13.3% gave it up on the advice of healthcare professionals.