Construction group KSH Holdings today reported a 165 per cent jump in first quarter net profit to $11.4 million.

Revenue for the three months to June 30 was up 50.9 per cent at $83.3 million, mainly due to a 49.6 per cent increase in revenue from the construction business to $71.7 million.

Revenue from sales of development property and rental income from investment properties increased by 69.8 per cent and 13.7 per cent respectively.

Earnings per share climbed to 2.76 cents from 1.23 cents previously while net asset value per share firmed to 46.9 cents compared to 43.54 cents as at March 31.

Looking ahead, KSH said the construction sector in Singapore continues to face challenges such as shortage of labour and equipments, rising competition, uncertainties of material prices, rising costs of operation and potential increase in financing cost.

"However, the outlook of the construction sector in Singapore remains positively due to the strong demand in both public and private sectors," it added.

The group has an order book on construction projects of more than $402 million as at June 30.

Property development projects under the group launched so far have either achieved better or met expectation in both sales volumes and prices.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, KSH is cautiously optimistic on the outlook of its performance for this financial year.