ASIA is slowly but surely becoming the super sports car centre of the world, according to Lamborghini, which makes what is arguably one of the most exotic cars available.

The Italian sports car maker's chief executive officer and president, Stephan Winkelmann, points in particular to the development of China and India.

'There is more and more interest coming from this part of the world,' says Mr Winkelmann. 'As the road infrastructure is rapidly improving, and with the incredible economic growth, we are expecting a continued explosion there.'

He adds that the market is 'barely penetrated', with most cars being directly imported rather than being sold through a distributor.

He will be in Singapore tomorrow to launch the new Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera, a lightweight variant which has lost 100 kg by adding featherweight equipment like six layers of carbon fibre and titanium wheel nuts, among others. As a result, zero to 100 kmh is accomplished in 3.8 seconds, down from 4.2 seconds in the 'conventional' Gallardo.

He is also due to speak at the Asia Automotive Conference on the topic of 'Luxury Brands and Globalisation - Is Asia becoming the Super Sports Car Centre of the World?'.

The aim of the two-day event, which begins tomorrow at the Marina Mandarin Hotel, is to identify business development, partnership and distribution opportunities in the Asian automotive industry.

Organised by the Asia Business Forum, the conference will also have other speakers from companies such as Ferrari, Ford, Honda, Volvo Trucks and Mahindra Renault.

As for Mr Winkelmann, he says that Lamborghini has never been shy about proclaiming itself as a status symbol.

'This forms part of the appeal for this part of the world, to be driving one of the world's most exclusive super sports cars does say something,' he explains. 'And with their rarity, a Lamborghini tends to attract relatively more attention than the likes of a Ferrari.'

He also says that Singapore is the only market where Lamborghini has outsold Ferrari. Last year, 29 units of the former were registered here, versus 26 for the latter, according to the Motor Traders Association of Singapore.

'Singapore is selling more cars than ever. We actually have an order book stretching to late 2008 for some models,' says Mr Winkelmann. Other than the Gallardo Superleggera, he says another special model coming soon is the Murcielago Roadster, which is nearing production.

'This should keep our order book very full.'

Lamborghini has achieved success despite having only two main models - the Murcielago and Gallardo. Mr Winkelmann puts it down to the company's strong focus on what it does and this includes 'no diesel, no hybrid, no SUV'.

'The key to our appeal is in simply offering the most extreme and powerful supercar available. For the Gallardo, we could boost sales by using a smaller engine, less carbon fibre, eschewing four-wheel-drive, but then it would not be a Lamborghini. It is successful because of its extremism.'