The world’s biggest shipbroker, Clarksons, has indicated it is set to soar past last year’s interim profit figure after a “strong” trading performance.
In an update, the London-listed group said it is expecting to report underlying profit before tax for the six months to 30 June of not less than £42m ($50.6m).
This compares to £27.3m in the same period of last year, which was in turn up 30% from 2020.
“Performance has been strong across all divisions, with the broking division, which has a market-leading position in nearly all the key shipping sectors, performing particularly well,” it said.
Interim results will be published on 8 August.
The full-year profit also looks set to beat last year.
“While mindful of macroeconomic conditions, the board nevertheless remains confident in the outlook for the business and expects results for the year ending 31 December 2022 to be materially ahead of its previous expectations,” the broker added.
In March this year, Clarksons celebrated its best-ever annual profit in largely booming shipping markets.
But the company said it was “conscious” of geopolitical uncertainty as 2022 progresses.
The group logged net earnings of £54.7m in 2021, up from £35.2m the year before.
Revenue jumped to £443.3m, compared with £358.2m in 2020.
The company increased its dividend for the 19th consecutive year to 84 pence per share.
In May, Clarksons survived another substantial shareholder rebellion to push through its controversial pay policy again.
The remuneration report gained 62.77% of the votes at its London annual general meeting, up from 60% in 2021.
The issue has been a recurring thorn in the group’s side for a number of years due to legacy contracts for chief executive Andi Case and finance and operations chief Jeff Woyda.
