COE prices in most categories see sharp fall in latest exercise

SINGAPORE — Certificate of Entitlement (COE) prices for cars fell in the latest bidding exercise that ended on Wedneday (Dec 7), with premiums for Category B (above 1,600cc or 97kW power output) seeing the sharpest drop to hit a nine-month low. The S$46,229 price tag (down 12.8 per cent) was the lowest across three COE categories that can be used for cars. 

Category A (up to 1,600cc and 97kW) closed at S$48,000, a 5.8 per cent fall, while Category E, which can be used for any vehicle but is usually utilised for big cars, dropped 9 per cent to S$50,010. For Cat A and E, the prices are the lowest since May this year. Meanwhile, the COE for motorcycles dipped slightly to S$6,113.

Only premiums for commercial vehicles and buses bucked the trend, rising 4.5 per cent to close at S$51,209.

Motor traders said car buyers are being more cautious amid uncertain economic conditions and talk of 
retrenchments. 

RTMT Motor managing director Ricky Tay said the drop in Cat B premiums was “drastic”, and could be due to big-car buyers — some possibly owning more than one car — temporarily putting the buying decision on hold. The market for Cat A cars had been quiet in the past fortnight, so the decrease in premiums for the category was “quite expected”, he said.

But Singapore Vehicle Traders Association first vice-president Raymond Tang said the fact that bidding became aggressive in the last 15 minutes of Wednesday's exercise showed traders had orders in hand to fulfil.

Many motor dealers are readying themselves for a motor show next month and would be snapping up Category E COEs, so that their clients will be able to have cars delivered before Chinese New Year at the end of January, he said. 

And the fact that premiums for commercial vehicles and buses rose shows that such vehicles are still in demand. This indicates that despite the economic headwinds, there are still jobs and projects going around, said Mr Tang.

Here are the numbers at a glance:

Cat A (Cars up to 1600CC & 97KW): S$48,000 (down from S$50,951)

Cat B (Cars above 1600CC OR 97KW): S$46,229 (down from S$53,001)

Cat C (Goods vehicles and buses): S$51,209 (up from S$49,002)

Cat D (Motorcycles): S$6,113 (down from S$6,212)

Cat E (Open category): S$50,010 (down from S$54,901)