Even though most smokers accept the benefits of giving up their habit, there are plenty of good reasons to put off doing so – weight loss, stress, irritating those with a nannying instinct. Investors worried about the health of their relative performance have a similar dilemma. They can play safe and hold on to high-yielding tobacco stocks or return to riskier quarters in hope of an eventual market rally.

The decision is further complicated by the fact that tobacco was not the best defensive choice last year. Altria, in part because it overpaid when acquiring UST for $12bn, has lost 28 per cent of its value in the last 12 months. That is better than the broader market – the S&P 500 lost 37 per cent of its value over the same period – but a 7.5 per cent yield indicates a fear that the dividend will have to be cut.