Abstract: During the period of the Republic of China, driven by the Shanghai cigarette market, Anhui began to plant tobacco to build a raw material market. Factories were built to form a cigarette manufacturing industry and strengthen regional trade in the Yangtze River Delta. Various market elements were continuously accumulated, gradually getting rid of the monopoly of foreign businessmen, and evolving from an initial small-scale single consumer market to a comprehensive commercial market for growing tobacco, production and marketing. The development of Anhui cigarette market promoted the development of Anhui local commodity economy, which reflected the progress of national capital development. However, it also had the historical limitations of lagging, dispersion, dependence, and fragility, which was the epitome of the times when China's industrial and commercial development faced both crisis and opportunity during the period of Republic of China.

Key words: cigarette market, capital flow, regional trade