* Profit up despite weaker results from property, oil units
* Outlook remains uncertain with trend of no major rig orders
SINGAPORE, April 23 (Reuters) - Singapore's Keppel Corp
<KPLM.SI>, the world's largest offshore oil rig builder, posted a
9 percent rise in first quarter net profit on Thursday, and
reiterated its outlook remains uncertain.
The company said its S$9.5 billion orderbook for offshore and
marine business extends to 2012, but a trend of no major rig
orders since the third quarter of 2008 had continued through the
past quarter, due mainly to the tight credit situation.
"The outlook for the rest of 2009 remains uncertain... While
we hope to see more signs of bottoming out in the economy, it
would be hasty to believe that a firm recovery will come
quickly," the firm said in a statement.
The conglomerate earned S$285 million ($189.6 million) in the
first three months of 2009, up from S$262 million in the year ago
period.
Earlier this year Keppel said that 2009 would be a
challenging year for the firm, which has a market value of $6.3
billion.
Keppel Corp and rival Sembcorp Marine <SCMN.SI> benefited
from the jump in oil exploration in recent years as crude prices
<CLc1> soared to record highs, but oil prices slid from a peak of
near-$150 a barrel in 2008 to less than $50 by the end of the
first quarter, leading to order cancellations for rigs.
The rise in its net profit came despite its 53-percent owned
property firm Keppel Land <KLAN.SI> booking a 38.8 percent drop
in first quarter net profit on Wednesday, and its 45-percent
owned oil firm Singapore Petroleum <SPCS.SI> posting a 43.5
percent slide in first quarter net earlier this week.
The firm said the property sector remains weak across the
region, but it sees opportunities for its infrastructure arm
thrown up by huge government stimulus packages.
Shares in Keppel Corp jumped 15.7 percent in the first
quarter, versus a 3.5 percent drop in the broader Straits Times
Index <.FTSTI>.
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