Supermarket chain Sheng Siong reported a 37.6 per cent drop in its first quarterly net profit to $10.5 million.

This was mainly due to the absence of the one time gain arising from the sale of an old warehouse at 3000 Marsiling Road, that was included in the first quarter profit figures last year.

The sale of the warehouse netted a gain of $10.5 million for the company which was reflected in the first quarter results last year.

In an announcement to the Singapore Exchange, Sheng Siong said its net profit from its core operation would have risen 31.3 per cent from $8 million in the first quarter last year to the $10.5 million in the same period this year.

Sales revenue for the supermarket chain grew by 12.3 per cent for the first quarter to $179.4 million due to the contribution from new outlets.

Sheng Siong has 33 supermarket outlets as of March 31, up from 25 outlets at the end of March last year.

Earnings per share fell to 0.76 cents for the first quarter, down from 1.22 cents in the same three-month period last year.

The net asset value rose slightly to 11.72 cents, up from 10.96 cents as at Dec 31, 2012.

Its share price closed 3.5 cents higher at 71.5 cents.