Members of South Korean music band BTS pose for photos on the red carpet of the Mnet Asian Music Awards in Hong Kong on Dec 14, 2018. (AP photo)

K-pop boy band BTS is on course to take the top spot on the United States’ Billboard 200 album charts with their latest release, according to the music ranking’s website.

“BTS is bound for No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart with their latest release, Map of the Soul: Persona,” Billboard said in an online posting on Monday.

It would be the third time the K-pop band has taken the top ranking on the chart, after twice doing so last year.

“Industry forecasters suggest the set, which was released on April 12, could earn between 200,000 and 225,000 equivalent album units in the US in the week ending April 18. If the album opens at No. 1, it will mark the third leader for the act, following 2018’s Love Yourself: Answer and Love Yourself: Tear”, it said.

Billboard is expected to reveal on Sunday the chart’s top 10 artists for the week of April 27, in which the Korean band is expected to come out on top.

The weekly Billboard 200 chart has ranked the world’s most popular albums since 1956. It has always taken into account album sales and, in more modern times, online streams.

BTS’ new album, released on Friday, was an immediate success, with hit track Boy with Luv becoming the fastest YouTube video ever to hit 100 million views -- reaching the milestone in just 38 hours.

The song also ranked third on Spotify’s global top 200 charts on Sunday. The Sweden-based music streaming service is the largest in the world.

BTS’ success has proved the band has transcended the K-pop phenomenon to become globally popular for their “unique musicality and artistry”, said South Korea news agency Yonhap.

The group’s recent string of successes also raised hopes that the septet may receive a Billboard or Grammy award, said pop columnist Kim Heon-sik.

“Taking No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and strong chart performances on Spotify and iTunes are signs that BTS has secured a universal fandom … it also drives up the possibility of the band winning at world-renowned award shows, such as the Billboard Music Awards and the Grammy Awards”, he said.