By Kimberly Chin 



  Manulife Financial Corp. said profit fell in the fiscal second quarter as the company was affected by interest rates driven by narrower corporate spreads and a steepening of the yield curve and incurred charges related to investments. 


  The Canadian financial services provider said net profit was 727 million Canadian dollars ($555.6 million), or C$0.35 a share, down from C$1.48 billion, or C$0.73 a share, a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting earnings of C$0.11 a share. 


  Excluding certain items, core earnings rose to C$1.56 billion from C$1.45 billion a year ago. 


  Write to Kimberly Chin at kimberly.chin@wsj.com