National Express in Eurostar poser

NATIONAL EXPRESS left more unanswered questions over its investment in the heavily loss-making Eurostar services today as it declared its intention to pull out of the business but refused to give any details of its exposure.

The bus and trains group hinted at its withdrawal at its annual meeting in May. Today, in a half-year trading update, it said, for the first time formally, that it is seeking to relinquish its involvement because of the 'disappointing performance of the business'.

Shareholders, left reeling by the big write-offs on National Express's shock decision last year to withdraw from Australia, have been left none the wiser on whether and at what cost the group will be writing off investment in Eurostar.

A company spokesman said: 'We genuinely do not know what our exposure might be, if any.'

Eurostar is in the middle of a complex restructuring to simplify its labyrinthine ownership. National Express is part of the London & Continental Railways consortium that owns Eurostar UK, which in turn has a 32.5% stake in the whole Eurostar entity.