Construction group CSC Holdings has posted a 36 per cent drop in first quarter net profit to $1.1 million.

Revenue for the three months to June 30 edged up 1 per cent to $130.3 million.

CSC suffered from lower margins, the result of intense competition for contracts which led to price compression, even as the cost of construction remained high.

Earnings per share shrank to 0.05 cent from 0.07 cent previously while net asset value per share firmed by 0.1 cent to 16.1 cents from the end of fourth quarter.

Looking ahead, CSC said operating conditions for the Singapore construction sector are expected to remain challenging in the next few months, with pricing pressure from intense competition, and rising construction costs hampering its effort to improve its operating margins.

As of end of July, the group's order book stood at about $210 million, comprising contracts from both the public and private sectors in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

CSC expects the bulk of these contracts to be completed within the next few quarters.