Company executives said that they expect to sell more than two million nine-bottle boxes this year.

That estimate, they pointed out, is based on the high demand for Havana Club among consumers, whose purchases have increased 17 percent on a year-by-year basis from 1994 to 2003.

The experts said that in 2003, Havana Club sales in four markets totaled 150,000 boxes, while in ten other countries they exceeded 10,000 boxes.

That good result responds to the development of a wide range of aged rums, which are distilled in oak casks using traditional methods.

In addition, Havana Club's new bottles combine modernity and tradition, and bare a seal to identify the Cuban origin of the rum.

By: Dtcuba