India is fourth largest tourist market for Singapore

India emerged as the fourth largest tourist source market for Singapore with 659,000 Indian tourists visiting the country in 2006.

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB), in its annual appraisal of tourism performance, was upbeat about the influx of Indian visitors in 2007.

STB is the nodal agency for Singapore tourism, one of the country's key service sectors. STB noted in its appraisal that Singapore was well positioned as a lifestyle and entertainment destination.

India, with its increasingly affluent and mobile middle-class, was an ideal platform to float the Singapore value proposition, it added.

STB now plans to strengthen its collaboration with key segments of Indian trade and also extend its overall reach to the tier II cities to target first-time travelers.

In 2006, Singapore exceeded its global targets with a record $12.4 billion in tourism receipts, registering a growth of 14.5 per cent over 2005, and 9.7 million international visitor arrivals.

Apart from India, countries like Indonesia, China, Australia and Malaysia were the other top tourist markets for Singapore in 2006.