Rolls-Royce stated that the one-off cost from the mid-air failure of one of its engines last year contributed to the 76% fall in pre-tax profits to £702m in 2010 from £2.96bn the year before. The firm has announced a £1.4bn service contract with Emirates covering its Trent engines.

Barclays’ pre-tax profits reached £6.07bn in 2010, up from £4.49bn in 2009; the group’s underlying profits for the year rose by 11% to £5.67bn.

Household goods giant Reckitt Benckiser, producers of Cillit Bang and Gaviscon brands, announced a 13% rise in pre-tax profits to £2.1bn in 2010, with sales up 9% to £8.5bn thanks to strong growth in developing markets.

Electricite de France (EDF), Europe’s largest energy provider, revealed a 74% drop in net profits to £857m last year, down from £3.26bn in 2009, as a result of falls in demand.

US biotech company Genzyme is to be bought by French pharmaceutical group Sanofi-Aventis in a £12.4bn deal, which will allow the French firm access to the market in drugs that treat rare diseases.

Net profits for the world’s biggest mining firm BHP Billiton rose by 72% to a record £6.5bn for the six months to the end of December, as a result of higher prices and strong demand.

Rio Tinto reported net profits of £8.9bn for 2010, up from £3.05bn in 2009, due to rising commodity prices and strong growth in emerging markets.

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