(Adds comments from the CEO in third paragraph.)

Oct. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Singapore Exchange Ltd. said first- quarter profit climbed 18 percent, beating analysts’ estimates, as increased fees from record derivatives trading helped offset rising operating costs at the city’s bourse.

Profit rose to S$87.5 million ($69.5 million) in the three months through September, from S$74.2 million a year earlier, the company said in a statement today. That beat the average estimate of S$83.3 million by six analysts compiled by Bloomberg. Revenue increased 12 percent from a year earlier to S$178.4 million, the bourse said. Expenses increased 9.4 percent.

“SGX had record derivatives volumes and continued to see growing interest for listings and new memberships,” Chief Executive Officer Magnus Bocker said in a statement.

Revenue from derivatives trading at the bourse climbed 26 percent from a year earlier to S$43 million, while those from securities trading increased to S$72 million, compared with S$71.3 million, the statement said.

A daily average of S$1.59 billion worth of shares traded on the exchange in the first quarter, compared with S$1.56 billion in the same period a year earlier, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Stocks plunged globally in the last quarter on concern faltering U.S. economic growth and Europe’s worsening sovereign- debt crisis will derail the global economic recovery. Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index slumped 14 percent during the three months through Sept. 30, the worst quarterly decline since December 2008.

--Editors: Jason Clenfield, Nick Gentle.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan Burgos in Singapore at jburgos4@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Gentle at ngentle2@bloomberg.net.