Commenting on its third quarter figures AST Research Inc says it shipped 332,000 units in the latest quarter, a 57% increase from a year ago; the quarter’s total for notebooks rose 129% to 80,000 units; international sales rose 61% to $233.5m and AST says it continued to expand its customer base in Europe, posting an 89% year-over-year increase, withsales gains in the UK, France and Nordic countries; sales in the Americas rose 59% to $357.8m it said.