COE prices for big cars drop in first exercise since new counting method for quota kicks in

SINGAPORE — Certificate of Entitlement (COE) prices for big cars closed lower at the end of the latest bidding exercise on Wednesday (Aug 3), the first exercise after a new counting method for COE quotas took effect.

Premiums for vehicles in the open category, which is used mostly for bigger cars, dropped by 0.88 per cent to S$113,000 — down from the record S$114,001 seen in the previous bidding exercise.

Large cars (above 1,600cc or 97kW), or fully electric cars with output over 110kW, saw premiums go down to S$107,001 from S$110,003 in the previous bidding exercise.

Premiums for small cars (up to 1,600cc & 97kW), or fully electric cars with output of up to 110kW, went up by 1.4 per cent to S$80,000.

For goods vehicles and buses, COE prices rose by 2.19 per cent to S$56,089.

In the motorcycle category, premiums went up to S$11,000, compared to S$10,910 in the last bidding exercise.

Premiums for two categories — for large cars as well as in the open category — have been in the six-digit range since the tender exercises in June.

Last month, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced a new counting method for COE quotas that was aimed at reducing supply fluctuations.

With the new method, the number of COEs available for bidding will be based on a rolling average of de-registrations of vehicles over the last two quarters. 

Before this, the number of COEs available for bidding in each quarter was based on the number of vehicles de-registered in the previous quarter and a month’s lag time for processing and computation.

Under the new method, the COE quota for August to October is 10,581.

LTA said that under the previous counting method, the COE quota for this period would have been 9,394, or 11.2 per cent lower.

NUMBERS AT A GLANCE

Cat A (Cars up to 1,600cc & 97kW or fully electric cars with output of up to 110kW): S$80,000 (up from S$78899)

Cat B (Cars above 1,600cc or 97kW or fully electric cars with output over 110kW): S$107,001 (down from S$110,003)

Cat C (Goods vehicles and buses): S$56,089 (up from S$54,889)

Cat D (Motorcycles): S$11,000 (up from S$10,910)

Cat E (Open category for any type of vehicles): S$113,000 (down from S$114,001)