BANGKOK, April 28 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk

has launched its hugely popular weight-loss drug Wegovy in

Thailand, an executive of the Danish drugmaker's local

subsidiary said on Monday, marking the injectable drug's first

entry into the Southeast Asian market.

First launched in 2021, Wegovy helped make Novo Nordisk

Europe's most valuable listed company until recently, worth $615

billion at its peak.

Wegovy is available in more than a dozen countries including

the United States, Japan and China, with Thailand becoming its

latest market.

"We actually received the Thai FDA approval already in

2023," said Enrico Canal Bruland, vice president and general

manager of Novo's Thai subsidiary. He noted that Novo was making

Wegovy available in Thailand ahead of rival Eli Lilly's ( LLY )

Zepbound weight loss drug.

Bruland declined to provide details on Wegovy's pricing in

Thailand, which has a population of around 66 million, or Novo

Nordisk's plans for expansion into other Southeast Asian

markets.

Wegovy is currently available for prescription in private

hospitals around the country and will be available soon in

public hospitals, Bruland said.

"Over the last four years, we have invested approximately

500 million Thai baht in clinical trials in Thailand," he said.

Novo Nordisk's diabetes drug Ozempic, which contains the

same active ingredient as Wegovy, is already available in

Thailand.

About 42% of Thailand's adult population is considered

obese, and the rate of obesity in school children surged from

5.8% to 15% within two decades, according to data from the

country's health ministry.

"If we then look at the economic impact that this has,

approximately 1 percent of GDP is used for health-related costs

that come with obesity and productivity loss," Bruland said.

"We believe with this innovation, we can make a big

difference and hopefully bend this curve."

(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um; Editing by Emelia

Sithole-Matarise)