GARRETT KELLEHER'S Shelbourne Developments has announced sales of around 30 per cent so far on his soaring Spire development in Chicago.

A total of 352 units have been sold in the 150-storey building which is due for completion in 2012. Not surprisingly, about half the sales have been in Chicago, with the rest garnered on a world wide tour that so far has taken in Moscow, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Jo'berg and Dublin.

The company has not given a breakdown of overseas sales, or of prices. Billed as the world's tallest residential building, The Spire will have 1,194 one to four-bedroom apartments with prices starting at $750,000. The weak dollar will have helped sales internationally, while in Chicago, the daring design by Santiago Calatrava will have appealed to citizens who are proud of their city's architectural heritage.

The reported level of sales will come as a boost to the project at a time when many international property markets, most notably in the US, are suffering a major downturn.