Shares in Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly and Company rose after early data suggested that weight-loss pills could significantly expand the global obesity treatment market, rather than simply replace injectable drugs.

Novo Nordisk’s stock surged after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drugmaker’s weight-loss pill, giving the Danish company a boost in the competitive race to bring an effective oral obesity treatment to market and helping it regain momentum against rival Eli Lilly.