Singapore - Singapore's Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp, the smallest of the city-state's three listed banks, on Wednesday posted a 12-per-cent drop in net profit for the first quarter as provisions for bad loans rose.

Net profit from January to March fell to 545 million Singapore dollars (369 million US dollars), down from 622 million Singapore dollars for the same period a year ago, when the bank reported one-time gains, it said.

"Given the challenging operating environment, we have done well in the first quarter," chief executive David Conner said in a statement.

"The economic outlook remains difficult and uncertain," he added. (dpa)