July 29 (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Roche plans

to accelerate the development of its anti-obesity drugs to

challenge rivals like Eli Lilly ( LLY ) and Novo Nordisk

in the booming market, the Financial Times reported

on Monday.

Roche is among a growing number of would-be rivals to Novo

and Eli Lilly ( LLY ), whose weight-loss injections have been in

feverish demand, with experts boosting their sales forecasts for

such treatments to as much as $150 billion by the early 2030s.

Roche CEO Thomas Schinecker told the newspaper that their

first obesity drugs would come to market "significantly faster

than people are expecting," potentially by 2028.

The company said earlier this month that its second drug

candidate, an experimental once-daily pill, which it acquired

from its purchase of Carmot Therapeutics yielded positive

results in an early-stage trial.

Schinecker told FT that Roche could have "around seven"

drugs from the Carmot acquisition, with several in an earlier

stage of development.

Roche did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for

comment.

(Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)