China could ban cigarette ads following its signing of a UN anti-smoking treaty, dealing a "heavy blow" to the industry in the world's biggest tobacco market, an official newspaper reported Monday.

China is thought to account for about a quarter of the world's smokers.

A ban on ads and promotions and other severe anti-smoking measures would follow ratification of the U.N. Framework Convention on Tobacco Control by the National People's Congress, China's legislature, at its annual session next spring.

China's government "fully supports" the convention, and the Health Ministry is in discussions with other government bodies on how best to implement it, the paper said.

While the convention could provide some protection against cigarette smugglers and counterfeiters, it will hit the industry hard, said Zheng Fugang, secretary general of the China Tobacco Society, an industry group.

"It will deal a heavy blow to China's tobacco business," Zheng was quoted as saying.

A Health Ministry spokesman, reached by telephone, refused to comment and requested a list of questions in writing. The Tobacco Association had no listed number.

China's 350 million smokers -- one-third of the world total -- generated 130 billion yuan (about US$16 billion) in profits and tax revenues over the first nine months of this year. The industry contributed 10 percent of the country's total tax revenue last year.

Alarmed by rising health costs, China has imposed some restrictions on smoking and cigarette advertising. About two-thirds of Chinese men smoke, but only about 5 percent of women.

Thick palls of smoke greet patrons in restaurants and tea shops, and men routinely puff away while clutching children, operating machinery or preparing food. Cigarettes are routinely offered as a greeting and, though sales are banned to minors, boys and increasingly girls are seen smoking on street corners and in cafes and cheap karaoke bars.

Few restaurants have nonsmoking sections, and awareness of the harm caused by smoking and second hand smoke is low -- especially in the vast and largely poor hinterland, where most Chinese live.

The industry is dominated by domestic companies mostly based in the southwestern tobacco producing province of Yunnan. They are among the country's most important firms.

In an odd juxtaposition that underscored those companies' influence, China's national soccer team trained for last year's World Cup at a sports center in Yunnan that is run by and named after Hong Ta, the country's largest tobacco company.

Shanghai, China's largest city and commercial hub, is also counting on tobacco advertising generating revenue for its Formula 1 racing track now under construction.

The U.N. treaty requires restrictions on tobacco advertising and sponsorship, tougher health warnings that would cover half the surface of a pack of cigarettes, limits on language like "low-tar" and "light," and restrictions on public smoking. It would also encourage companies to raise tobacco prices and taxes.

China's U.N. ambassador, Wang Guangya, signed the convention in New York on Nov. 10, making China the 77th country to sign the agreement, which was adopted by the United Nations in May. Only five nations have ratified it so far. The United States has yet to sign,

China's NPC usually meets in March, and the convention would take effect 90 days after ratification.

An estimated 4.9 million people worldwide die each year from tobacco-related illnesses, although the figure for China isn't clear.

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