COE prices rise across the board except for commercial vehicles; Cat B premium up 5.8%
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The COE category for motorcycles recorded the largest increase of 6.4 per cent.
PHOTO: ST FILE
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SINGAPORE – Certificate of entitlement (COE) prices rose across all categories except commercial vehicles at the final bidding exercise of 2024.
At the close of bidding at 4pm on Dec 18, the premium for Category B COEs – meant for larger, more powerful cars and electric vehicles (EVs) – ended at $109,000, 5.8 per cent higher than on Dec 4
At $96,000, the price of a Category A COE – used to register smaller, less powerful cars and EVs – was 2.1 per cent higher than the $94,000 recorded in the previous exercise.
Category D for motorcycles recorded the largest increase of 6.4 per cent to $8,381, up from $7,878.
The premium for an Open category (Category E) COE ended at $108,992, 4.8 per cent higher than the $104,001 recorded two weeks ago.
These certificates can be used to register any vehicle type other than motorcycles but are almost always used for bigger and more powerful cars.
The price of a Category C certificate for commercial vehicles bucked the trend, dipping 0.6 per cent to $69,890. It was $70,289 at the last tender.
A COE is needed to register a vehicle for use in Singapore.
Ms Adele Lee, assistant general manager overseeing Swedish EV brand Polestar at motor group Wearnes Automotive, said that while December is generally “quite quiet” for dealers, many that want to end the year on a high have run promotions to sell more cars, possibly driving up COE premiums.
While she expected premiums to rise, she was expecting a $2,000 to $3,000 increase for Category B and was therefore surprised by the $5,990 rise recorded on Dec 18.
On the trajectory of COE prices in 2025, Ms Lee said it was “anyone’s guess”.
“The COE quota announcement in February is the next impact that prices will react to,” she said.
In October, the Land Transport Authority said it would inject up to 20,000 COEs over the next few years
Compared with the final tender exercise of December 2023, when premiums fell across the board, Ms Lee said there have been many new entrants to the market in 2024, particularly EV makers.
“Because of that, there are more people selling cars, so it is not unexpected that COE prices went up (almost across the board in December 2024),” she added.
Mr Ng Choon Wee, commercial director of Hyundai distributor Komoco Motors, said he was surprised by the rise in Category A and B premiums, especially at a time when most people are abroad during the holiday season.
Like Ms Lee, he said this could be due to distributors trying to achieve targets for this year.
Looking ahead to 2025, Mr Ng said premiums at the next COE tender on Jan 8 “could be soft”, as buyers may wait for better deals at the Singapore Motorshow 2025.
The motorshow runs from Jan 9 to 12 at the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre.
