Increase in COE quota for next three-month period

There will be a small respite for car buyers when the new certificate of entitlement (COE) quota starts next month.

The Land Transport Authority announced yesterday that COEs for cars (including Open COEs) will increase by 5.8 per cent to 4,865 a month for the November to January period.

Of the lot, 1,925 will be for cars up to 1,600cc and 130bhp (down from 1,967), 2,014 for cars above 1,600cc or 130bhp (up from 1,729), and 926 for the Open category (up from 903).

Open COEs can be used for any vehicle type except motorcycles, but mostly end up being used for bigger cars.

Commercial vehicle buyers will have 735 COEs a month, up from 674, while motorcyclists will have 1,049 a month, up from 934.

In total, the average monthly quota comes up to 6,649, or 7.1 per cent more than for the current period.

Observers said the bigger supply of COEs is likely to ease prices for commercial vehicles - currently at their highest in more than two years - as well as for motorbikes.

Car COEs, however, may remain largely unchanged because the 1,600cc category, which accounts for the bulk of the quota, has contracted in size.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 14, 2020, with the headline Increase in COE quota for next three-month period. Subscribe