The lead-up to the opening day of the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games has seen a boost in foreign visitor spending, it has been reported.

International visitors to the Youth Olympic Games have spent more than US$8.3 million on Visa-branded payment cards on the Opening Day, according to spending data from the company. This figure represents an increase of nearly 50 percent over the same day in 2009.

During the lead-up and first two days of the Games (11-15 August 2010), more than US$42.5 million was spent via Visa cards – the only card accepted at competition venues. Top contributing countries to the spending included the USA, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia and Japan.

“Based on initial spending figures, the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games looks to have started on a positive note for the local economy and businesses. We’ve also seen a strong showing for our Visa Prepaid cards, with more than 30,000 active cards so far,” Visa’s Country Manager - Singapore and Brunei, Meranda Chan said.