[MinMin]

Rising fuel prices, higher ERP charges, inflation dampen COE prices

COE PRICES ended relatively flat in the latest exercise on Wednesday, as record fuel prices, higher ERP charges and inflation continued to weigh on car buyers.
Certificate of entitlement for cars with engines up to 1,600cc - which make up the bulk of sales - dipped by 3.4 per cent to close at $14,101.

COE for cars above 1,600cc ended hardly changed at $14,689.

Luxury brands aside, market watchers reckon car sales in this segment will slow further as consumers 'downgrade' to small, more fuel-efficient models.

The Open COE, used mainly for cars, finished 5.2 per cent to hit a four-month low of $15,459.

Traders said the current environment has spooked speculators who usually buy Open COEs to resell at a profit.

'Right now, they don't want to be caught with too many Open COEs in hand,' one said.

The commercial vehicle COE chalked the biggest fall - 11.1 per cent - to end at a six-month low of $12,002.

Motor traders said car buyers are cautious in light of cost spirals on several fronts.

Motorcycle COE premium bucked the trend, inching upwards by 1.8 per cent to finish at $1,102.

The Land Transport Authority received 6,132 bids, 1.3 per cent fewer than for the previous tender two weeks ago.

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