CERTIFICATE of Entitlement (COE) premiums for the second round of bidding in August saw increases for the commercial vehicle and open categories, while the two passenger car categories held steady.
The mixed results come after premiums for all COE categories rose in August’s first round of bidding.
Category C, which applies to commercial vehicles (CVs) and buses, increased 1.8 per cent or S$1,300 to S$72,400.
The Open category, which can be used to register any vehicle except motorcycles, increased 0.7 per cent or S$762 to S$106,001.
Category A, or mainstream cars, dipped 0.4 per cent or S$389 to S$93,900.
The Category A COE applies to mainstream cars that have engines of up to 1,600 cubic centimetres (cc) in capacity or with up to 97 kilowatts (kW) of power, or electric vehicles (EVs) with up to 110 kW of power.
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The price for Category B, used for larger and more powerful cars, fell 0.2 per cent or S$212 to S$105,889.
Category B is applicable to cars with engines of more than 1,600 cc in capacity or that have more than 97 kW of power, or EVs with more than 110 kW.
In the preceding round, Category B saw its largest bump since January, as a result of new brand launches in the car market.
The motorcycle category, D, posted the largest decrease of any category: 3 per cent or S$291 to S$9,310.
Slow and steady
The sales manager of a multi-brand CV dealer said that the small rise in the commercial vehicle category’s premium was consistent with steady demand seen in the past 12 months.
The manager noted that as Category C’s quota was the smallest among all the categories, discounting the Open category, a small change in demand would be enough to increase the premium.
As reported by The Business Times, a rise in vehicle revalidations in the first five months of the year as vehicle owners chose not to buy new vehicles may also have slowed the increase in COE quotas.
Category C revalidations numbered 4,028 from January to May 2024, compared with 5,569 for all of 2023.
Corinne Chua, managing director of Volvo at Wearnes Automotive, said that demand for passenger cars has been slow since the major increase in COE premiums in the last round.
August’s first round of bidding saw Category B increase by S$6,001, which industry players tied to sales from new China brand entrants Xpeng and Zeekr.
Chua noted that in that round, Category B was particularly oversubscribed with 487 unsuccessful bids, or 1,150 bids on a quota of 663.
In comparison, in July’s second round of bidding, there were 230 unsuccessful bids, with 891 bids received on a quota of 661.
“It could be a spillover of demand we saw (in the first round of bidding in August),” said Chua.
She added that demand for Category E remains strong, as some dealers are using it to register Category B cars and to secure certificates in preparation for The Car Expo, a motor show that will happen in October.
Category E is largely used as a proxy for Category B, since the latter is typically the most expensive COE category.
Some dealers also “bank” Category E certificates as they are transferable and have up to three months’ validity.
