** Shares of Kailera Therapeutics KLRA.O rise 1.9% to $23.7 premarket

** The drug developer says its experimental oral obesity drug KAI-7535, for patients with diabetes and obesity, met the main goals of two late-stage trials in China

** The studies evaluated the oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist HRS-7535 in obesity and Type 2 diabetes patients outside Greater China

** The drug was developed by China's Hengrui Pharma and licensed to Kailera in 2024 for markets outside Greater China

** In the obesity trial, patients receiving the highest 180 milligram dose lost an average 10.9% of their body weight after 44 weeks, compared with 2.5% for placebo

** Weight loss increased to 11.1% at week 50 - KLRA

** In a separate trial HRS-7535 met its main goal of showing non-inferiority to AstraZeneca's AZN.L diabetes drug dapagliflozin in adults with Type 2 diabetes inadequately controlled on metformin

** Up to last close, stock is down 10.3% since its IPO in April