Shell reported underlying earnings more than doubling to $15.8bn (€12.7bn) last year, up from $7.2bn (€5.79bn) in 2017.

Reckitt Benckiser has agreed to buy US baby formula maker Mead Johnson Nutrition for £13bn (€15.25bn), giving the British consumer goods company a new product line and expanding its presence in developing markets.

Whitbread said underlying sales at its Costa Coffee chain recovered over the last three months and its Premier Inn hotel brand continued to grow, sending shares in the company 3% higher.