Salomon Inc.’s first-quarter profit rose 16% to...

Salomon Inc.’s first-quarter profit rose 16% to $173 million, compared to the year-ago period, reflecting strength in the company’s securities and commodities units. The New York-based financial services company said revenue for the quarter fell to $1.61 billion from $1.72 billion. Pretax earnings at the concern’s Salomon Bros. brokerage unit rose to $253 million from $248 million, which “reverses a nine-month period of declining profitability,” the company said. In Salomon’s commodities operations, Phibro Energy’s earnings before taxes totaled $27 million, up from $24 million, and Salomon’s Philipp Bros. unit reported its pretax profit was up five-fold, to $15 million from $3 million.