Eurotunnel sees profits jump 37%

Channel Tunnel operator Eurotunnel said there had been a 2 per cent fall in the cross-Channel car market as the economic downturn put a dampener on business travel and tourism.

However, the decline also reflected the previous year's boost from Iceland's ash cloud which caused people to drive to the Continent when their flights were cancelled.

Despite the shrinkage, Eurotunnel reported a "very satisfying" first half which saw revenues increase 22 per cent to €396 million (348.9m) in the first half, while underlying profits rose 37 per cent to €189m.

Spokesman John Keefe said: "People are not travelling as much as before. The economic situation is weighing a bit on the market and the euro is expensive now. With the euro crisis, the instability is playing on the minds of the British a bit too. The market is not growing as it was two or three years ago."

He said the company now had about 50 per cent of the car market across the Channel. Passengers were increasingly choosing to take their cars through the tunnel, even though it was often more expensive than ferries.

Eurotunnel's performance was also boosted by the bank holidays around the royal wedding and Easter, which meant people could have 11 days off work by taking just three days of leave.

The number of Eurostar passengers was up 3 per cent despite a 1 per cent drop in the second quarter due to the comparative impact of the ash cloud.

It results were also boosted by a "spectacular" 16 per cent rise in freight trains and a 21 per cent increase in the number of trucks using its services.