City: End of the line

AT long long last, we're near the end. It all started in 1984, and it finishes on Wednesday for individuals and Friday for institutional investors. It will have taken the Government nine years to get shot of its entire British Telecom stake.

BT3 has been by far the most low- key of the three share issues, with unquestionably the most irritating - and sometimes incomprehensible - advertisements (step forward Inspector Morose). Perhaps this is because it is the least tempting offer. The indications are that demand is fairly moderate, so the share price isn't going to roar upwards after the issue. The best reason, for both institutions and individuals, to buy the shares this time around is for the income. The yield on the shares in the first year will be around 10 per cent - about double the average stock market yield.

After that, investors should think of selling. In its prospectus, BT hinted at growing competition in the future, but the competition has already arrived. Not just Mercury, but a group of foreign telecom companies are poised to grab different bits of BT's business.

Nor is BT3 free of regulatory problems. For example, the regulator's troublesome demands for BT to split into different accounting divisions is giving the company a lot of worry. If BT is worried, investors should be, too. The shares, meanwhile, are on a rating level with the market, which is unusual - they traditionally trade at a discount. It may not take long for the discount to reappear. Buy therefore, but don't hold on to them long.