COPENHAGEN, March 7 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk

said on Thursday it expects Wegovy to be approved for sale in

China this year and plans to soon launch the popular weight-loss

drug in the largest Asian market with capped volumes.

The upcoming launch in China will initially focus on

patients paying out-of-pocket for Wegovy, the head of Novo's

business in China, Christine Zhou Xiaping, told an investor

meeting at the company's headquarters outside Copenhagen.

Wegovy had its debut in Japan, its first Asian market, in

February. The Danish drugmaker has launched the drug in eight

countries since its debut in the United States in 2021.

The company is racing to increase supplies of the

blockbuster drug to meet soaring demand but has had to cap

volumes in most markets. Eli Lilly ( LLY ), which makes rival

weight loss drugs, has said it expects demand to outpace supply

in 2024.

Wegovy belongs to a class of drugs known as GLP-1 agonists,

originally designed to treat type 2 diabetes, that have been

shown to reduce food cravings and empty the stomach more slowly.

Several manufacturers have filed clinical trial applications

for GLP-1 generic drugs for both diabetes and obesity, but are

not expected to get approval before 2028, Xiaping said.

More than 100 GLP-1 pipeline drugs are under development in

China, with two new drugs from Chinese companies expected to

launch next year, according to a recent HSBC research note.

Novo's patent for Wegovy in China expires in 2026.

China would be Novo's second-biggest market behind the

United States.