Research in Motion, based in Canada, were put number one on the list, published by the magazine. Forbes publish a list of the world's quickest growing firms every year.

Sigma Designs, a US based chipmaker, were listed in second place and Sohu.com, a Chinese Internet company were put in third place.

For the makers of the Blackberry it was the first time they had been included on the list as up until now firms based outside the United States weren't included.

RIM has seen its profits increase by 85% in just three years following the introduction of the Blackberry mobile phone.

Second place Sigma has seen its profits increase by 104% in recent years due to the increasing popularity of blu-ray technology and a deal which has been made with Microsoft.

Five China-based firms were included on the list. Forbes said these companies are doing well because of the economic climate in China which is still good despite the worldwide downturn.

Apple were listed at number 39 and Google were listed at 68.

Fortune magazine said: "Since the Great Depression, some companies just keep growing. And not only in the United States,"