Chinese Pharmaceutical Companies Enter Weight-Loss Drug Market Following Patent Expiration

Chinese pharmaceutical manufacturers are now positioned to compete with international corporations in the weight-loss medication sector following the expiration of a key patent. On March 20, patent protection ended in China for semaglutide, a highly successful drug developed by Novo Nordisk that produced approximately $35 billion in worldwide sales last year. This development allows domestic firms to introduce rival products. Leading Chinese companies such as Hengrui Medicine, the country's top revenue-generating publicly traded pharmaceutical firm, and Innovent Biologics have submitted applications. Innovent has gained approval from China's National Medical Products Administration for a lower-dose formulation of mazdutide, marking it as the first domestically developed obesity treatment authorized for long-term weight management in the country. Clinical trial results from phase 3 studies indicate that both Hengrui's ribupatide and Innovent's higher-strength mazdutide may offer superior weight reduction compared to semaglutide. Data shows Hengrui's weekly injection at a 6-milligram dose led to an average 17.7% weight loss over 48 weeks, while Innovent's 9-milligram mazdutide achieved an average 18.55% reduction after 60 weeks. This shift represents a significant opportunity for Chinese drugmakers in a rapidly expanding global market.