By Ron Bousso and Shadia Nasralla LONDON (Reuters) - Shell on Thursday posted first-quarter net profit of $9.65 billion, topping analysts' forecasts, as strong earnings from fuel trading and higher liquefied natural gas (LNG) sales offset cooling energy prices. The stronger-than-expected profits followed a string of forecast-beating results from rivals including BP and Exxon Mobil as the sector continues to benefit from strong demand and price volatility. Norwegian rival Equinor on Thursday...

Earnings from Shell’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading operations are likely to have been significantly higher in the fourth quarter of last year despite an output drop caused by plant outages, it said on Friday. Europe’s largest oil and gas company’s update ahead of its full-year results on Feb. 2 also flagged a $2-billion accounting hit in 2022 as a result of European Union and British windfall taxes on the energy sector. Fourth-quarter LNG liquefaction volumes are expected to be the...