SINGAPORE - Certificates of entitlement (COE) premiums ended mixed in the latest tender Wednesday on the back of a dwindling order bank and the lack of strong fresh buying interest.

COE prices for cars up to 1,600cc and 130bhp took the biggest tumble by closing 7.3 per cent lower at $45,001 compared with a fortnight ago. Those for cars above 1,600cc or 130bhp finished 0.1 per cent higher at $56,100.

Prices for the Open COE, which can be used for any vehicle type except motorcycles, but which ends up mostly for bigger cars, ended 0.5 per cent lower at $57,700.

Commercial vehicle COE premiums closed 5.1 per cent higher at $38,900. Motorcycle premiums finished almost unchanged at $8,502, from $8,501 previously.

Mr Neo Nam Heng, chairman of diversified motor group Prime, said: "The market is very quiet. The COE supply is already so small, and yet there is no support."

He noted that new models from luxury brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW are still maintaining demand. This, he said, has prevented Category B - for cars above 1,600cc - prices from falling.

Meanwhile, a previous sales tactic to get shoppers to buy before a new emission penalty kicked in this month no longer applies.

And while there is anticipation in some quarters of a smaller COE supply in the next three-month quota period starting August, any shrinkage will be mitigated by the recycling of a sizeable batch of COEs which were renewed five years ago, and which expire this year.

Mr Neo, however, reckons COE supply is likely to expand in the remaining months of the year, which in turn "will soften premiums further".

"Deregistrations in April and May are higher. If this is maintained in June, we will see a bigger COE supply," he said.

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