Britain's leading ship broker Clarkson Plc reported a better-than-expected profit, driven by a recovery in dry bulk volumes and said it gained from higher trading volumes in the first few weeks of 2011 despite volatile freight rates.

Freight rates are expected to remain pressured this year as fleet supply gathers pace despite firmer demand prospects. It normally takes three years for a ship to be delivered, with many bulkers ordered before economic turmoil in 2008.

"Whilst uncertainty remains over the pace of global economic recovery in 2011, we are confident that Clarkson is well positioned and structurally aligned to maximise opportunities in shipping and its related markets," the company said in a statement.

Clarkson, which has operations in China, Australia, India, the UAE, South Africa, America and several European countries, also raised its full-year dividend by 9.3 percent to 47 pence a share.

January-December pretax profit was 32.4 million pounds ($52.7 million), compared with 22.5 million pounds a year ago.

Revenue climbed about 15 percent to 202.6 million pounds. The results were also driven by a strong performance from its broking division, as sales from the business rose about 55 percent to 41.3 million pounds.

Analysts, on average, expected a pretax profit of 30.2 million pounds on revenue of 202.1 million pounds, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. (Reuters)