(Reuters) - PNC Financial Services ( PNC ) reported a 21% fall in first-quarter profit on Tuesday, hurt by lower interest income as the lender paid more to hold customer deposits in a high interest rate environment.

The bank also forecast net interest income (NII) will decline about 1% in the current quarter, compared with the first quarter.

Net income fell to $1.34 billion, or $3.10 per diluted share, for the three months ended March 31, compared with $1.69 billion, or $3.98 per share, in the year-ago period.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)