SEOUL, Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- Philip Morris Korea Inc. said Friday it will launch a new e-vapor product in South Korea next week as it expands its smoke-free product lineup in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

The VEEV e-vapor product will hit the Korean market on Wednesday, where KT&G Corp. is the market leader, the company said in a press release.

Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI), the U.S. parent of Philip Morris Korea, derived 42 percent of its US$11 billion in sales in the second quarter from smoke-free products.

"The company has said conventional cigarettes will eventually belong in a museum. It aims to replace combustible cigarettes with smoke-free products," a company official said at a press conference.

PMI has invested 22.5 trillion won (US$16 billion) in research and development related to "scientifically proven" smoke-free tobacco products since 2008.

The maker of Marlboro has three smoke-free product lines -- IQOS heat-not-burn (HNB) products, ZYN nicotine pouches and VEEV e-vapor products. ZYN nicotine pouches are not currently available in South Korea.

HNB products heat tobacco without combustion, producing an aerosol rather than smoke.

KT&G currently leads South Korea's non-combustible tobacco segment with a 48 percent market share, followed by Philip Morris and British American Tobacco.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr

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