Shares in BP and Royal Dutch Shell leapt on Tuesday as Europe’s two biggest oil companies reported profits well ahead of analysts’ expectations in the first quarter because of strong operational performance and the soaring price of oil.

UK Daily View

Ed Crooks on the oil giants’ results that comfortably beat analysts’ expectations

BP rose 6 per cent to 613p as it delivered a particularly sharp rise in profits, in what Tony Hayward, the chief executive who took over last May, told staff was a “good start: the first signs of real change inside the company”.