Cat B COE premium climbs 12.9% to $129,890 after falls in last two rounds; Cat A rate dips 0.9%

SINGAPORE – Certificate of entitlement (COE) prices climbed 12.9 per cent to $129,890 for larger cars on Nov 19, after falling over the last two exercises.

Premiums rose in all other categories except that for smaller cars, which dipped to $109,000.

The price of a Category A certificate, meant for smaller and less powerful cars and electric vehicles (EVs), was 0.9 per cent lower than the $110,002 at the previous exercise.

The Category B COE premium for larger and more powerful cars and EVs rose from $115,001 in the previous exercise to $129,890.

The Open category (Category E) premium went up by 3.3 per cent from $121,010 to $125,001. Open category certificates can be used to register any vehicle type except motorcycles, but end up mostly for bigger cars.

As such certificates are transferable, they give motor dealers the flexibility to register cars without having to wait for the next tender exercise.

At $76,389, the commercial vehicle (Category C) COE rate was 0.5 per cent higher than the $76,000 two weeks ago.

The COE premium for motorcycles (Category D) went up 1.5 per cent, from $8,600 to $8,729.

After the close of the Nov 19 exercise, the Land Transport Authority said COE prices remained high, which reflects sustained demand.

“We advise car buyers and dealers to be prudent in bidding for COEs,” it added.

Ms Corinne Chua, managing director of Volvo at Wearnes Automotive, said the rebound in Category B COE premium was due to the narrow price gap with Category A in the previous bidding exercise.

On Nov 5, Category A COEs closed $4,999 lower than Category B’s. This was the narrowest price gap between the two categories since November 2024, when the Category B premium was $8,112 higher.

When this happens, customers “turn to buy a Category B car instead”, which resulted in the higher Category B prices in this tender exercise, said Ms Chua.

She added that COE prices are unlikely to fall in the remaining two biddings of 2025, as buyers may rush to register cars before the EV Early Adoption Incentive (EEAI) and Vehicular Emissions Scheme (VES) changes from January 2026.

The two schemes are meant to encourage the adoption of EVs through rebates provided by the Government.

Mr Nicholas Wong, chief executive of Honda agent Kah Motor, said the significant price drop of $16,888 in Category B COEs in the Nov 5 exercise – a 12.8 per cent fall from the exercise before that – led to a surge of interest in cars in this category.

He noted that bids received went up from 953 to 1,514 this round, an upsurge of almost 60 per cent.

“This caused price pressure, and an almost full rebound,” Mr Wong said.

As for the “price sensitive” Category A COEs, “prices are still high compared with sub-$100,000 prices in June this year”, Mr Wong noted.

Associate Professor Walter Theseira, a transport economist at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, said that car buyers often “obsess” over short-term COE price movements.

“But as the past few weeks show, that’s very difficult to predict,” said Prof Theseira.

He said that over the next few years, he expects COE supply to increase owing to the large number of older cars on the road today registered between 2015 and 2020.

“Thus, buyers who are in no need of a car within the next few months are certainly better off waiting,” he said.

That said, Prof Theseira expects some volatility in the last few tenders in 2025, before EEAI and VES rebates are reduced.