News Summary: Philip Morris Int'l 1Q profit falls

THE RESULTS: Philip Morris International Inc.'s first-quarter profit dropped nearly 12 percent to $1.88 billion as cigarette sales fell in the overseas markets that it serves and it was hurt by foreign exchange rates for the U.S. dollar. Excluding excise taxes, revenue fell nearly 9 percent to $6.9 billion.

CIGARETTES SOLD: The seller of Marlboro and other brands outside the United States said shipments fell more than 4 percent to 196 billion cigarettes. Total Marlboro volumes fell about 4 percent to 65.9 billion cigarettes.

TOUGH ENVIRONMENT: Shipments fell more than 7 percent in the company's region that encompasses Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, due to increased excise taxes in Russia and the prevalence of illicit trade in the region. Shipments also fell nearly 5 percent in Latin America and Canada, nearly 3 percent in the European Union and 2.5 percent in Asia.