SINGAPORE - Ayala Land, the Philippines' largest developer, said on Monday it may revive its long-held ambitions of growing its overseas business and will invest directly in foreign projects if the opportunity arises.

Chief Financial Officer Jaime Ysmael also said there were "early signs" of an improvement in the Philippines' residential market although that will not be reflected in 2009 earnings because of the way the firm accounts for property sales.

"Now is the time to revisit our overseas initiatives to rebalance our portfolio," Ysmael said at the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit in Singapore.

Ysmael said the Philippines would remain the firm's main focus in the foreseeable future and did not elaborate on the company's overseas plans.

Ayala Land, which has long harboured ambitions of diversifying beyond its home market, has a stake in a $330 million Asian real estate fund that has invested in Thailand and India but it does not directly own any foreign properties.

The firm last month posted a 50 percent fall in net profit for the first quarter ended March to P907 million ($18.75 million) due to weaker home sales.

Ayala Land, like many developers, recognises revenues progressively as projects are being built, so an expected recovery in second half home sales will not be reflected immediately in the firm's revenues, Ysmael said.