Singapore's UOB says Q1 net profit down 22.7pc

Singapore's United Overseas Bank (UOB) said Wednesday that first quarter net profit fell 22.7 percent year on year as the global downturn continued to hurt the banking sector.
Profit for the three months ended March totalled 409 million Singapore dollars (277 million US), down from 529 million dollars in the same quarter in 2008.
Revenue came in at 1.38 billion dollars, up 9.3 percent from last year, the bank said in a statement.
Net interest income was up 11.4 percent to 949 million dollars and non-interest income edged 4.9 percent higher to 434 million dollars.
Despite the gains in revenue, the bank was hit by higher impairment charges.
For the quarter, UOB set aside 174 million dollars as provision for loans and investments "in view of the prolonged global economic uncertainties," a statement said.