COE prices end mixed in first April 2014 exercise

Prices of Certificates of Entitlement (COEs) ended mixed in the latest bidding exercise Wednesday.
 
Despite promises of a larger supply of COEs to be made available from next month, the price for motorcycle COEs hit a new record high of $4,489, up from $4,289 from the previous exercise concluded in end-March.
 
Also, Category B COEs, which are for cars above 1,600cc or 130 bhp, surged by almost $2,000 to close at $84,504, as compared to $82,900 in the previous bidding round.
 
Meanwhile, open-category COEs, which can be used for any vehicle type, edged up slightly from $84,001 to $84,100.
 
Commercial vehicle COE prices fell to $49,503 from $53,891.
 
COEs for small cars, those below 1,600cc and 130bhp, saw prices close at $77,400, down from $78,602.

The surge in prices in the current exercise can be attributed to a longer bidding period this time round. During months that have five Mondays, like that in March, car dealers have three weeks as compared to the usual two to collect orders from buyers before bidding for certificates.