The Australian government is under pressure from bankers to increase its planned A$8 billion offering by about 50 per cent in Telstra, the country’s dominant telecom company, because of strong potential demand from investors. The government is likely to opt for a compromise that would allow a further A$4-7 billion sale of stock, if demand for the shares outstrips supply over the book-building period. The offering is expected in November this year. Meanwhile, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission feels that Telstra is not applying “reasonable” charges for public switched telephone network services, which are used by its competitors to connect to the incumbent’s network and channel long distance calls between fixed line and mobile phones.
