Schlumberger profit nearly halves as oil spending cuts weigh

(Reuters) - Schlumberger Ltd , the world's No.1 oilfield services provider, reported a 48.6 percent slump in quarterly profit, as spending cuts by oil producers continued to take a toll.

Net profit attributable to the company was $501 million, or 40 cents per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, compared with a profit of $975 million, or 76 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell 36 percent to $6.52 billion.

(This story corrects to say Q1 net profit, not loss, was $501 million in paragraph two)

(Reporting by Amrutha Gayathri in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)