Unless you've been living under a rock, there's a pretty good chance you've heard about the once-in-a-generation investment opportunity that is the legalized marijuana industry. According to Bank of America analyst Christopher Carey, the cannabis industry could one day offer peak annual sales potential of $166 billion, and disrupt industries that currently total $2.6 trillion in yearly sales. Considering that only two countries worldwide have OK'd recreational weed, and just over 40 have legalized medical marijuana, the ceiling for the pot industry is still a ways off.
But when it comes to the biggest individual market opportunities within the marijuana industry, the United States takes the cake (or should I say pot brownie?). Per Carey, the U.S. would account for 34% of the $166 billion in peak annual sales, based on his firm's modeling.
A black silhouette of the United States, partially filled in with cannabis baggies, rolled joints, and a scale.View photos A black silhouette of the United States, partially filled in with cannabis baggies, rolled joints, and a scale. More Image source: Getty Images.
U.S. pot sales should triple over the next five years However, a new report sheds light on just how fast the U.S. cannabis market is growing, as well as how much opportunity is still being lost to illicit marijuana channels.
This past week, Marijuana Business Daily (MBD) published its 7th annual "Marijuana Business Factbook," which details sale projections for the legal cannabis industry in the U.S. between 2018 and 2023, including an estimation of the breakdown between medical weed sales and recreational pot. According to the report, which breaks down revenue projections into ranges rather than a specific figure, here's how sales are expected to progress over the next five years:
2018: $8.6 billion to $10 billion 2019: $11.2 billion to $13.7 billion 2020: $15.7 billion to $19 billion 2021: $19.4 billion to $23.5 billion 2022: $22.4 billion to $27.4 billion 2023: $25 billion to $30.4 billion Regardless of whether you're looking at top- or bottom-end sales, the gist is that between 2018 and 2023 we should see legal pot revenue essentially triple in the United States, perhaps even hitting $30 billion. Additionally, the overall economic impact of the cannabis industry on the U.S. should rocket from $39 billion to $48 billion in 2019 to more than $100 billion by 2023.
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