COE premiums mostly higher with Open category ending at $99,999
Certificate of entitlement (COE) premiums ended mostly higher in the latest bidding exercise on Wednesday (April 6).
The COE premium for cars up to 1,600cc and 130bhp went up by 2 per cent from $71,556 to $72,996.
COE price for bigger or more powerful cars ended at $98,389, a $500 dip or about 0.5 per cent lower from $98,889 at the previous exercise.
The category for goods vehicles and buses rose by 6.6 per cent from $51,504 to $54,901.
Premiums for motorcycles rose by just $2 to $10,503.
The premium for Open COE, which can be used for any vehicle type except motorcycles but mostly ends up for bigger cars, ended higher at $99,999, a rise of less than 1 per cent from $99,010.
The bidding exercise is the second last one under the current quota period, which runs from February to April.
Motor traders expect the quota for the May to July period to be even smaller, making it crucial that they secure the bids now to fulfil orders rather than hope for lower premiums.
In addition, the new power criterion for electric vehicles, which comes into effect from the first bidding in May, is expected to add more pressure on prices in the smaller car category, as some EVs are expected to be moved into this traditionally more affordable class with the change.
Brands that offer EVs which will be re-categorised in May are said to have been building up a healthy order bank.
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