The South's state-owned Tobacco and Ginseng Corporation ships tobacco leaves to a factory in Pyongyang, where they are made into the Hanmaum (One Mind) brand of cigarettes.

ECONOMIST: North Korea

That was when the 57-year-old gave Gitanes Blondes -- a sister brand of the cigarettes that were an indispensable prop of Jean-Luc Godard films -- a complete makeover.

CNN: JAPAN'S HIDDEN PERSUADERS

Peter Stuyvesant cigarettes, a brand owned by Rothmans International (a company controlled by South Africa's Rupert family), are popular among all races but bought mostly by blacks.

ECONOMIST: South African advertising

They include special blends of both menthol and non-menthol cigarettes to try to keep the brand growing and to lure smokers away from its competitors.

NPR: Marlboro Maker Altria 1Q Profit Up About 16 Pct

Given that tobacco companies are all but prohibited from advertising, how can a premium brand differentiate itself from the cheaper competition when it sells its cigarettes in an identical box?

FORBES: Time to Stop Bogarting Cigarette Stocks

Lorillard, the third largest U.S. tobacco company and leading maker of menthol and premium cigarettes, continues to gain market share for its leading brand, Newport.

FORBES: Big Tobacco Stocks Among Healthy Standouts In Market's Turbulent Swings

Gallaher's LD brand is one of the biggest tobacco labels in Russia, and its Sovereign cigarettes are widely smoked in the former Soviet states of Ukraine and Kazakhstan.

FORBES: Magazine Article