Fox International has crossed the $1bn box office mark in 2010 after less than one month – earlier by far than any studio in history.

In a feat that may never be beaten for sheer speed, the company announced it had already sold $1.02bn in overseas tickets, fuelled chiefly by Avatar.

Fox International previously held the record for the quickest studio to reach the milestone in June 2006.

Key drivers were the massive launch of Avatar last month in China, where the film has raced past $127m, and Italy, where after three weeks the tally stands at $55.6m. Avatar currently stands at $1.452bn overseas.

Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel has also played its part, grossing $116.9m since January 1 to raise the running total to $190.6m.

Fox International reached the industry’s biggest single year tally in 2009 with $2.45bn and now has three of the top five grossing release in history with Avatar, Titanic and Ice Age 3.

Fox International co-presidents Paul Hanneman and Tomas Jegeus and their teams will now set their sights on the $2bn threshold. Upcoming releases include Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief,Date Night, The A-Team, Knight & Day, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, and The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader.