More than half of all investments from Singapore in that year were directed to Asia, according to the latest available data released by trade agency IE Singapore.

The region received a total of $240 billion, or 57.7 per cent of Singapore's direct investments abroad in 2011.

This was a 6.5 per cent rise from the year before. In contrast, the overall increase in direct investment growth to all destinations rose just 1.7 per cent to $416.4 billion in 2011.

Within Asia, China was the top receipient of direct investments from Singapore, at $76.6 billion.

Malaysia came in second with $34 billion worth of investments, while Indonesia was third with $32.3 billion of investments.

The appeal of such economies lies in their favourable demographics, which provide conducive conditions for growth, the agency said.

It expects Singapore firms to continue focusing on investing in developing markets.