Obesity drug market expands despite COVID-19 as Qsymia soars

Saxenda makes historic high KRW 18.3 billion, Qsymia closely tailgating with 12 billion won

Overall obesity treatment sales in 2020 H1 reach KRW 70.4 billion, growing 7.6% from last year

Product image of Saxenda (left) and Qsymia

The obesity treatment market in South Korea has marked a significant growth in the first half of the year.

 

The treatment market expanded, although the consumers became reluctant to open their wallets amid COVID-19 pandemic.

 

A newcomer Qsymia is now leading the market alongside with Saxenda, or so-called ‘Gangnam Diet Shot.’ On Aug.

 

26, a pharmaceutical market research firm IQVIA found Korea’s obesity treatment market in the second quarter jumped 13.2 percent from last year at 33.2 billion won to 37.6 billion won.

 

The cumulative sales in the first half of the year grew 7.6 percent from last year at 65.4 billion won and generated 70.4 billion won.

 

If the market continues to see the positive growth, it would be able to break through the 100 billion won mark for two consecutive years.

 

Quarterly sales of obesity treatment market in South Korea (Unit: KRW 100 million) Source: IQVIA

Novo Nordisk’s Saxenda and Alvogen Korea’s Qsymia were two stars of the market leveraging the growth.

 

In the first half of the year alone, Saxenda made 18.3 billion won.

 

Compared to last year at 19.8 billion won, the quarterly sales dropped by 7.4 percent, but the injection is still the top obesity treatment in the Korean market.

 

Its market share in the first half of the year was at 26.0 percent.

 

Saxenda was the world’s first obesity treatment to be approved as a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist.

 

Saxenda shares the same substance liraglutide with Victoza, prescribed to type 2 diabetes patients, but its administration route and dose are different.

 

As the users became aware of the medication to be comparatively safer with its mechanism of working like appetite-regulating and weight loss-inducing GLP-1, Saxenda has been enjoying unprecedented popularity for last two years.

 

Started off with 2018 third quarter sales at 1.7 billion won, Saxenda’s sales surged to 5.6 billion won in the fourth quarter and took the lead in the market.

 

Ever since the sales in first quarter of 2019 broke through 10 billion won point, Saxenda has maintained the sales around 10 billion won and defended the market leader title.

 

In the third quarter last year, the treatment sales peaked and it dominated market share of 33.7 percent.

 

But Saxenda’s easy race was shaken up, when Qsymia has announced its release in last January.

 

Quarterly sales of major obesity treatments in South Korea (Unit: KRW 100 million) Source: IQVIA

Immediately after the launch, Qsymia generated 4.3 billion won in the first quarter and came in second in the Korean obesity treatment market.

 

After making another 5.8 billion won in the second quarter, Qsymia accumulated 10.2 billion won in the first half of the year and consolidated its strong market presence next to Saxenda.

 

As of the first half of 2020, Qsymia’s market share has reached 14.4 percent.

 

The figure doubles the market share of Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s Dietamin (6.7 percet) that used to be the second in the market until the fourth quarter last year.

 

Alvogen Korea licensed in phentermine and topiramate combined Qsymia from the U.S.-based pharmaceutical company Vivus in 2017 for the sales in the South Korean market.

 

Alvogen Korea also signed a co-marketing deal with Chong Kun Dang late last year and came into the market with powerful sales and marketing activities.

 

Well experienced in the obesity treatment market with Furing and Furimin, Alvogen Korea created a mutual synergy effect with Chong Kun Dang’s vast sales power and quickly took over the market.

 

Except for Qsymia, other treatment generally experienced stagnating growth.

 

Three products out of the top five—Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s Dietamin, Huon’s Hutermin and Alvogen Korea’s Furing—saw their sales fall compared to last year same time.

 

Hutermin made 3.1 billion won and raised the sales only by 0.8 percent from last year, whereas Dietamin (4.7 billion won) and Furing’s (2.7 billion won) sales volume fell by 0.2 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively, against last year.

 

The market was expecting an intense competition eyeing on the market share left by a blockbuster drug Belviq as it exited the market with risk of developing cancer.

 

But the market experts say the pandemic and release of Qsymia have grounded them from soaring in the market.