A NUMBER of Ferrari's overseas markets are turning positive, particularly the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, including China, which despite a recent heavy tax on luxury goods is showing a positive sales trend.

The Italian supercar manufacturer revealed this last month when it announced its financial results for the first nine months of 2009.

The onset of the global economic slump over a year ago caused high-end carmakers' sales to decelerate by as much as 40 per cent.

Ferrari was not spared by the credit crunch either but the prancing horse said that nonetheless it managed to increase market share in all of the countries where it is present.

It ended the third quarter of 2009 with revenues of 396 million euros (S$817 million) - down 12 per cent from the 450 million euros in the same period last year - and 1,454 cars delivered to clients in Q3, down 4.3 per cent.

For the first nine months of 2009, Ferrari's revenues totalled 1.28 billion euros, down 9.3 per cent from 1.42 billion euros in the same period in 2008.

Year-to-date deliveries came up to 4,680 cars, or down 6.9 per cent, while trading profit was 176 million euros, down 27.6 per cent from 243 million euros in the same period last year.

To put the results in perspective, the company pointed out that 2008 was the most economically successful year in Ferrari's entire history.

This article was first published in The Business Times.