MEDIA group Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) on Monday said profits dipped 6.3 per cent as investment income was hurt by ongoing volatility in global financial markets.

The fall in second-quarter earnings to $99.6 million masked an otherwise robust performance by its core businesses. Profit before investment income jumped 36 per cent to $111.8 million for the three months ended Feb 29 as revenues rose 18.9 per cent to $298.1 million.

Newspaper and magazine operations saw sales rise 8.4 per cent to $236.4 million, buoyed by an 11.3 per cent increase in print advertisement revenues.

Investment income was the main drag on the bottom line, falling 83.7 per cent to $5.1 million. This was attributed to lower profits on investments sold this year, the company said. Also, the fair valuation of current holdings has also been impacted by continued volatility in global financial markets.

For the half year, net profit was down 2.4 per cent at $211.5 million, even as earnings excluding investment income was up 26.9 per cent.

'Advertisment revenue will continue to be driven by the Singapore economy, which is expected to grow at a more moderate pace in 2008,' said chief executive Alan Chan.

'In view of rising business costs amid the current inflationary climate, efforts will be focused on sustaining operating profit margins.'

He added that the bottom line will continue to benefit from profits from Sky@eleven and that the company's directors expect recurring earnings for the year ending August 31 to be 'satisfactory'.

An interim dividend of eight cents per share has been declared.