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SINGAPORE - United Overseas Bank (UOB) , Southeast Asia's second-biggest lender, said its second-quarter profit fell 22 per cent on higher bad debt charges, but the profit drop was smaller-than-expected due to sharply lower taxes.
April-June net profit fell to S$470 million from S$601 million a year ago, UOB said on Wednesday.
Analysts had predicted a net profit of S$441 million, according to the average of six forecasts compiled by Reuters.
Bad debt charges more than doubled to S$465 million from a year earlier.
The results came two days after Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp , Singapore's smallest listed bank, surprised markets with a 10 per cent rise in quarterly profit on higher trading income and strong loan margins.
DBS , the region's biggest bank, will report earnings on Friday.
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