A windfall from the sale of shares in the London Metal Exchange, acquired from collapsed broker MF Global, has helped swing the European arm of one of the world’s largest commodities brokerages into a profit.

INTL FCStone Europe Ltd, the London-based arm of commodities broker INTL FCStone, had been on track to post an operating loss of just over $7m for the 12 months ended December 31, according to accounts filed with Companies House last week.