Lorillard Inc. (LO) and Reynolds American Inc. (RAI) announced plans to hike prices for their cigarette brands, a move that comes on the heels of price increases from the nation's largest cigarette maker Altria Group Inc. (MO).

Pricing is a key issue for the U.S. cigarette industry as companies have seen pressure on volumes amid smoking bans and higher taxes. Higher prices can help bolster profits when volumes suffer.

Reynolds said Friday that its cigarette business is raising list prices of its Camel, Kool, Winston and Salem brands by 44 cents per pack effective March 16.

The company will raise prices of Pall Mall and Doral cigarettes by 41 cents per pack, a spokesman for the company said.

Lorillard is raising prices for Newport cigarette and several other brands by 71 cents per pack.

The hikes come on heels of price increases by competitor Altria Group Inc. (MO), which early this week announced plans to raise prices on Marlboro and several other cigarette brands by 71 cents a pack, a move it said was primarily intended to cover the costs of a 61 cent a pack federal excise tax increase that goes into effect later this year.

-Anjali Cordeiro; Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-2408; anjali.cordeiro@dowjones.com