Singapore  - Singapore's United Overseas Bank (UOB) said Friday that its net profit for the third quarter rose 5.3 per cent compared with the same quarter a year ago as a jump in bad debt charges was made up by strong gains in its investments.

Net profit for the three months through September reached 500 million Singapore dollars (358 million US dollars), up from 475 million Singapore dollars a year earlier, UOB said in a statement.

Impairment charges in the third quarter came to 235 million Singapore dollars, a year-on-year increase of 49 per cent, while net interest income rose 3.6 per cent to 925 million Singapore dollars.

"Three months back, we indicated that maximum fear is behind us," UOB's chief executive Wee Ee Cheong said. "Now it appears that the worst for the economy is behind us as well."

On Wednesday, Singapore's Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp posted a 12-per-cent rise in net profit for the third quarter to 450 million Singapore dollars.

With its growing assets, it has overtaken UOB as the city-state's second-biggest bank.

Singapore's largest bank, DBS Group, is set to announce its third-quarter results November 6. (dpa)