MILAN, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Sales at Italian luxury group Moncler rose 12% at constant exchange rates in the third quarter, driven by a strong growth in Europe and improvement in China as COVID-19 curbs eased.

The group, known for its warm puffer jackets said on Wednesday it faced the northern hemisphere winter season "with confidence" after revenue exceeded 1.5 billion euros ($1.51 billion) in the nine months to September.

Demand for luxury goods has so far proved resilient against inflationary pressures and a potential recession, with U.S. shoppers taking advantage of the dollar's strength in Europe and the key Chinese market bouncing back from COVID-19 restrictions.

Moncler's revenue in the third quarter reached 638.3 million euros, slightly topping a company-provided analysts' consensus forecast of 637 million euros.

The eponymous brand generated 528.2 million euros in sales, up 13% and above a consensus of 521 million euros, while revenue at the smaller label Stone Island, acquired in 2020, rose 8% to 110 million euros versus analyst estimates of 116 million euros. ($1 = 0.9930 euros) (Reporting by Claudia Cristoferi, editing Federico Maccioni and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)