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Eli Lilly’s next-generation obesity drug delivers strong weight loss, reduces knee pain in late-stage trial
The Eli Lilly logo appears on the company’s office in San Diego, California, U.S., Nov. 21, 2025.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Eli Lilly on Thursday said its next-generation obesity drug delivered what appears to be the highest weight loss yet in a late-stage trial while reducing knee arthritis pain, clearing the first of several upcoming studies on the weekly injection.
The highest dose of the drug helped patients with obesity and a type of knee arthritis lose an average of 23.7% of their body weight at 68 weeks, when analyzing all participants, including those who discontinued treatment. When evaluating only patients who stayed on the drug, the highest dose delivered 28.7% weight loss on average.
The company said some patients lost so much weight that they decided to drop out of the trial.
“It’s incredible,” said Dr. Caroline Apovian, co-director of the Center for Weight Management and Wellness at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “Now, we have a drug that rivals the weight loss benefits of surgery.”
Apovian said Eli Lilly appears to be positioning the drug strategically for people with severe obesity, or a body mass index above 35 or 40. She noted that the company said 84% of patients in the trial had a BMI above that number in the trial.
Shares of Eli Lilly rose more than 3% on Thursday.
It is the first late-stage data on retatrutide, which works differently from existing injections and appears to be more effective. Eli Lilly is betting big on retatrutide as the next pillar of its obesity portfolio after its weight loss injection Zepbound and its upcoming pill. But it’s still unclear when the drug could enter the market.
It’s a critical part of the drugmaker’s plan to maintain its market share majority over Novo Nordisk in the booming market for weight loss and diabetes drugs. Some analysts estimate the segment could be worth about $100 billion by the 2030s.
Retatrutide also met the trial’s other main goal of reducing pain from knee osteoarthritis – a common condition that wears down the joint’s cartilage and leads to pain and stiffness – by up to 62.6% on average when analyzing all patients, based on a widely used survey. More than 1 in 8 patients who took the drug were completely free from knee pain by the end of the trial, Eli Lilly said.
One concern with current weight loss drugs is that they can lead to the loss of lean muscle mass. But Apovian said the results show that in adults with severe obesity, you can improve physical function with retatrutide.
The results appear to surpass Wall Street’s expectations. In a note ahead of the findings, BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman said his base-case assumption was for the drug to show weight loss of around 20% to 23%, with at least a 50% reduction in knee pain.
The company believes retatrutide “could become an important option for patients with significant weight loss needs and certain complications, including knee osteoarthritis,” Kenneth Custer, president of Lilly Cardiometabolic Health, said in a statement.
In a note Thursday, JPMorgan analyst Chris Schott said retatrutide’s tolerability data, or how well patients handle the treatment, is “somewhat worse vs Zepbound, though not surprising, in our view.”
Roughly 18% of patients on the highest dose of the drug stopped treatment due to side effects, compared with 4% of those in the placebo group. Eli Lilly said those dropout rates were “highly correlated” to patients’ starting body mass index and included discontinuations due to “perceived excessive weight loss.”
Among those with a BMI of 35 or higher who took highest dose, 12% stopped treatment. Schott said that number is closer to the dropout rates seen in trials on Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug Zepbound and Novo Nordisk‘s obesity injection Wegovy.
In a separate note on Thursday, BMO’s Seigerman said discontinuation rates “appear to highlight the speed and strength of weight loss was excessive for some patients with lower BMI.” But he said, “all in results are impressive.”
Around 43% of patients on the highest dose experienced nausea, while roughly 33% and 20.9% had diarrhea and vomiting, respectively. More than 1 in 5 patients on the highest dose also experienced dysesthesia, which is an unpleasant nerve sensation. The company said it was generally mild for patients and rarely led to them discontinuing treatment.
The study, called TRIUMPH-4, didn’t solely focus on weight loss, meaning that other trials specifically designed for that outcome could produce different or higher results. Eli Lilly expects to report findings from seven additional phase three trials on the drug by the end of 2026.
Dubbed the “triple G” drug, retatrutide works by mimicking three hunger-regulating hormones – GLP-1, GIP and glucagon – rather than just one or two like existing treatments. That appears to have more potent effects on a person’s appetite and satisfaction with food than other treatments.
Tirzepatide, the active ingredient in Zepbound, mimics GLP-1 and GIP. Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy, mimics only GLP-1.
Higher doses of tirzepatide helped patients with obesity lose roughly 20.9% of their body weight on average in late-stage studies, when analyzing all patients regardless of discontinuations.
As Eli Lilly establishes an edge in the space, its chief rival, Novo Nordisk, is racing to catch up. In March, Novo Nordisk said it agreed to pay up to $2 billion for the rights to an early experimental drug from the Chinese pharmaceutical company United Laboratories International.
Novo Nordisk’s newly acquired drug is a clear potential competitor to retatrutide because it similarly uses a three-pronged approach to promoting weight loss and regulating blood sugar. But Novo Nordisk’s treatment is much earlier in development, meaning it will take several years before it reaches patients.
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Budget 2026: FM Nirmala Sitharaman gives a strong push to manufacturing, infrastructure and job creation, while proposing a simpler tax and customs system.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents the Union Budget 2026-27.
Budget 2026 Takeaways: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday presented the Union Budget 2026-27, giving a strong push to manufacturing, infrastructure and job creation, proposing a simpler tax and customs regime, and hailing the government’s modernisation drive as a “reforms express”.
The Budget 2026 is anchored around three ‘kartavyas’ — driving growth by enhancing productivity and competitiveness, building people’s capacity, and ensuring inclusive development under the vision of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas.
In her ninth consecutive Budget in Parliament, Sitharaman laid out a multi-pronged strategy to sustain growth amid global uncertainty, including expanding domestic electronics and semiconductor capabilities, de-risking infrastructure projects, skilling India’s youth for emerging technologies, and easing compliance for taxpayers and importers.
Here are the key takeaways from Budget 2026 across manufacturing, infrastructure, skills, AI, taxation and customs duty.
Manufacturing Gets A Boost
Budget 2026 put a special emphasis on the manufacturing landscape in India. The outlay for electronics components manufacturing was raised sharply to Rs 40,000 crore, while new schemes for rare earth magnets, chemical parks, container manufacturing and capital goods seek to reduce import dependency, and strengthen domestic supply chains. Textiles got an integrated, employment-oriented package covering fibres, clusters, skilling and sustainability.
Infrastructure-Led Growth
Infrastructure got a boost with a higher capex allocation and initiatives like a risk guarantee fund to de-risk projects for private developers, new dedicated freight corridors and national waterways, dedicated REITs (real estate investment trusts) for recycling of significant real estate assets of central public sector enterprises (CPSEs), and a seaplane VGF (viability gap funding) scheme.
The Centre’s capital expenditure (capex) target has been increased to Rs 12.2 lakh crore for FY27, up from Rs 11.2 lakh crore earmarked for the current financial year. Moreover, maintaining the fiscal discipline, Sitharaman said the government expects the fiscal deficit to be at 4.3 per cent of the GDP in 2026-27, lower than 4.4 per cent projected for the current financial year.
Tier-II and Tier-III cities were placed at the centre of urban growth via City Economic Regions, backed by reform-linked funding.
“We shall continue to focus on developing infrastructure in cities with over 5 lakh population (Tier II and Tier III), which have expanded to become growth centres,” Sitharaman said in her Budget Speech.
Greater Emphasis On Skilling
The Budget placed renewed emphasis on the services economy as a jobs engine. A high-powered Education-to-Employment and Enterprise Committee will realign skilling with market needs, including the impact of emerging technologies.
Content creation and creative industries get a boost through AVGC labs in schools and colleges, support for animation, gaming and comics, and new institutional capacity for design and hospitality. Tourism-linked skilling, from guides to digital heritage documentation, signals a clear intent to convert culture and content into employment and exports.
“I propose to support the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies, Mumbai in setting up AVGC Content Creator Labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges,” FM Sitharaman said. AVGC stands for animation, visual effects, gaming and comics.
AI & Semiconductors Push
Artificial intelligence (AI) was positioned as a cross-sector force multiplier rather than a standalone theme. The Budget provided a push to artificial intelligence (AI) by promoting adoption with governance, agriculture, education and skilling, including proposals for AI-enabled advisory tools for farmers and AI integration in education curricula.
On hardware, the semiconductor strategy expanded decisively under ISM 2.0 (India Semiconductor Mission 2.0), with focus on domestic equipment manufacturing, materials, research centres and workforce development, signalling a long-term commitment to building a resilient chip ecosystem in India.
Taxation, ITR, TDS, TCS
A major structural reform comes with the Income Tax Act, 2025, effective April 1, 2026, containing simpler rules and redesigned forms.
Budget 2026 provided compliance relief for individuals, including extended timelines for revising returns to March 31 from December 31 earlier, staggered ITR due dates, and easier filing of Form 15G/15H through depositories.
Individuals with ITR-1 and ITR-2 returns will continue to file till July 31, and non-audit business cases or trusts are proposed to be allowed time till August 31, according to the Budget Speech 2026-27.
“I propose to extend time available for revising returns from 31st December to up to 31st March with the payment of a nominal fee. I also propose to stagger the timeline for filing of tax returns. Individuals with ITR 1 and ITR 2 returns will continue to file till 31st July and non-audit business cases or trusts are proposed to be allowed time till 31st August,” Sitharaman said.
TDS (Tax deducted at source) rules were clarified for manpower services, while a rule-based system for lower or nil TDS certificates is proposed. TCS rates were cut to 2% for overseas tour packages, education and medical expenses under liberalised remittance scheme (LRS). Litigation is targeted through integrated assessment and penalty orders, lower pre-deposit requirements, and wider immunity provisions.
TDS on the sale of immovable property by a non-resident will be deducted and deposited through resident buyer’s PAN (Permanent Account Number)-based challan instead of requiring TAN (Tax Deduction and Collection Account Number), Sitharaman said.
Customs Duty Tweaks
Customs duty rationalisation continued with a clear focus on domestic manufacturing, energy transition and ease of living. Exemptions have been extended or introduced for capital goods used in lithium-ion batteries, critical minerals processing, nuclear power projects and aircraft manufacturing.
Personal imports will become cheaper with a reduction in duty on goods for personal use from 20% to 10%. Seventeen cancer drugs and additional rare-disease treatments were exempted from customs duty. Process reforms aimed at trust-based, tech-driven clearances, faster cargo movement and lower compliance costs, especially for exporters and MSMEs (micro, small, medium and enterprises).
STT On F&O Hiked
The Budget increased securities transaction tax (STT) on futures trading from 0.02% to 0.05% and on options trading from 0.10% to 0.15%, a move that upset the capital markets with the BSE Sensex crashing more than 2,300 points from the day’s high and the NSE Nifty dropping to 24,571.75.
Securities Transaction Tax (STT) is a direct tax imposed on the buying and selling of securities in India.
Commenting on the Budget, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “The Union Budget reflects the aspirations of 140 crore Indians. It strengthens the reform journey and charts a clear roadmap for Viksit Bharat.”
February 01, 2026, 14:43 IST
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Shanghai (China): The Consulate General of India in Shanghai welcomed the resumption of Air India’s direct flight services between Shanghai and New Delhi, marking a major step forward in restoring people-to-people, business and institutional connectivity between India and China.
According to an official release, the inaugural Shanghai-New Delhi flight departed today from Shanghai Pudong International Airport, carrying over 230 passengers on board the Boeing 787 aircraft. The relaunch comes after a gap of nearly six years and represents a significant milestone in normalising bilateral air connectivity following the suspension of services in early 2020.
Speaking on the occasion, Consul General Pratik Mathur said, “The resumption of direct flights between Shanghai and New Delhi is a tangible expression of the renewed momentum in India-China engagement. Enhanced air connectivity is essential for facilitating trade, tourism, academic exchanges and people-to-people contacts, particularly between India and East China. We are pleased to see Air India restoring this important link.”
As per a release, Air India will operate the route four times a week using its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, featuring modernised cabins and enhanced onboard services. The restored service reflects the growing demand for travel between the two countries and the steady recovery of cross-border mobility. It will also support commercial, educational and cultural exchanges between India and the Yangtze River Delta region, one of China’s most economically dynamic clusters.
The Consulate General of India in Shanghai remains committed to supporting initiatives that strengthen connectivity and deepen cooperation across trade, investment, tourism, education and cultural exchange, the release stated.
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