The obesity market doubled in 5 years

The obesity market size in the first half of the year was 96.7 billion won

Market size exceeds 50 billion won in the second quarter

Saxenda widens the gap with Qsymia.

 

The imminent release of large products such as Wegovy.

 

The domestic obesity market is expanding at a rapid pace.

 

As demand for weight loss through pharmaceuticals increases, the market size has more than doubled in the past five years.

 

Saxenda's quarterly sales exceeded 20 billion won and its market share approached 50%.

 

With the imminent release of large-scale products such as Mounjaro and Wegovy, which are popular overseas, a reorganization of the market is expected in the future.

 

According to IQVIA, a pharmaceutical research institute, on the 31st, the size of the domestic obesity treatment market in the first half of last year was 96.7 billion won, a 17.9% increase from the same period last year.

 

The obesity market grew 24.5% from the previous year to 44.4 billion won in the first quarter, and reached 52.3 billion won in the second quarter, a 12.9% increase from the previous year, reaching the largest size ever.

 

This is the first time that the obesity treatment market has exceeded 50 billion won in quarterly sales.

 

The obesity market continues to grow steadily, increasing by 39.2% over the past three years from 37.6 billion won in the second quarter of 2020.

 

Compared to 24.3 billion won in the second quarter of 2018, it has increased by 115.2% in 5 years.

 

As satisfaction with recently introduced obesity treatments has increased, the number of people trying to lose weight using medications has also increased significantly.

 

Novo Nordisk's Saxenda led the expansion of the obesity treatment market.

 

Saxenda occupied about half of the obesity treatment market and operated a robust monopoly system.

 

In the first half of last year, Saxenda's sales increased 53.3% from the previous year to 39.6 billion won.

 

Saxenda's sales in the first quarter increased 53.0% from the previous year to 15.9 billion won, and in the second quarter, sales increased 53.5% to 23.7 billion won, exceeding 20 billion won in quarterly sales for the first time.

 

Saxenda, released in Korea in 2018, is the world's first obesity treatment drug approved as a GLP-1 (Glucagon-Like Peptide 1) analog.

 

It has the same ingredients as Victoza (ingredient name: liraglutide), which is prescribed for type 2 diabetes patients, but the usage and dosage are different.

 

Saxenda enjoyed explosive popularity as it was recognized as relatively safe because it works by the exact mechanism as GLP-1 in the human body to suppress appetite and induce weight loss.

 

Saxenda has been leading the obesity treatment market for 19 consecutive quarters since taking the lead in the obesity treatment market with sales of 5.6 billion won in the fourth quarter of 2018, immediately after its launch.

 

Saxenda's sales gap with the new product Qsymia narrowed to 800 million won in the first quarter of 2021, but the gap has widened significantly since then with even more rapid growth.

 

In the second quarter of last year, Saxenda's sales gap with Qsymia reached 14.9 billion won.

 

Saxenda's sales share in the obesity treatment market in the second quarter reached 45.3%.

 

Qsymia recorded sales of 8.8 billion won in the second quarter, up 12.2% from the previous year, but the gap with leader Saxenda widened significantly.

 

Qsymia, released at the end of 2019, is a drug with the same ingredient that Alvogen Korea secured domestic sales rights in the United States in 2017.

 

It is a combination of Phentermine Hydrochloride and Topiramate.

 

Alvogen Korea signed a joint sales contract with Chong Kun Dang at the end of 2019 and began domestic sales in earnest.

 

Qsymia threatened its lead by increasing its market share to 18.4% in the first quarter of 2021, but its share has since stagnated.

 

Qsymia's market share in the second quarter was 17.0%, significantly lower than Saxenda.

 

The industry predicts that the market will change significantly in the future with the emergence of significant obesity treatments that have proven commercial feasibility overseas.

 

Last April, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved Novo Nordisk's Wegovy.

 

Wegovy is a GLP-1 analog from the same family as Saxenda.

 

Novo Nordisk improved Saxenda from once daily administration to once weekly administration.

 

After Wegovy was launched in the U.S.

 

market, demand soared to the point where it was out of stock.

 

It is so popular that even Ozempic, a diabetes treatment with the same ingredients and usage method, is sold out.

 

Eli Lilly Mounjaro received approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety last June.

 

Mounjaro is a next-generation GLP-1 analog that activates both GLP-1 and GIP receptors with once-weekly administration.

 

Mounjaro has been approved as a treatment for type 2 diabetes and is expected to secure an indication for obesity treatment in the future.

 

Mounjaro, which received US approval last year, recorded sales of 2 trillion won in the first half of this year.

 

If Mounjaro is approved as an obesity treatment, it is expected to spark an obesity treatment craze along with Novo Nordisk's Wegovy.