Fall in COE premiums for Category A and B after supply increase; Open Category rises to record high

Fall in COE premiums for Category A and B after supply increase; Open Category rises to record high

SINGAPORE: Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums for Category A and B fell on Wednesday (May 17), in the first bidding exercise under the increased quota for cars in the two categories.

Premiums for Category A, which is for smaller cars, closed at S$92,000 (US$68,490), down 8.9 per cent from S$101,001 in the previous tender.

Premiums for larger and more powerful cars in Category B fell to S$113,034, a 5.3 per cent drop from S$119,399.

Open category COEs, which can be used for any vehicle type but end up being used mainly for large cars, rose to a record S$125,000, from S$124,002. This exceeds the previous high of S$124,501 from the tender that closed on Apr 19.

COEs for commercial vehicles, which include goods vehicles and buses, rose to S$77,501 from S$75,589 in the previous bidding exercise.

Motorcycle premiums closed at S$10,602 – double the closing price of about S$5,000 in the last tender. Prices in this category plunged in the last round, following fresh measures requiring bidders to put down a higher bid deposit and cutting the validity period for motorcycle temporary COEs.

A total of 3,536 bids were received in the latest exercise, with a quota of 1,844 COEs available.