“The opportunities to develop hotels in Singapore are huge,” Choy Chan Pong, director of the land administration division of the Urban Redevelopment Authority, told fDi. The URA is seeking investment in large chain, as well as smaller boutique, hotels. “The property market is taking off but values are still very low compared to many other Asian cities. It is a very opportune time for investors,” said Mr Choy.

Singapore posted an estimated S$10.8bn ($6.6bn) in tourism receipts from January to December 2005, a 10.5% increase on 2004. It had 8.94 million visitors in 2005, a 7.3% increase on 2004. By 2015, the city-state is aiming to post S$30bn in tourism receipts and attract 17 million visitors. The government is prepared to invest S$1.9bn over the next decade in order to realise this goal.