ASEAN-NEWS, SINGAPORE - Premiums for Certificates of Entitlement rose, except for small cars, at the end of the latest bidding exercise on Wednesday.

The biggest increase was for big cars, which rose by 10 per cent or S$8,301 to S$88,500.

In the Open Category, a COE will cost S$89,990, which is 2 per cent or S$1,991 higher than that of the previous round of bidding.

However, the COE premium for small cars fell by 7 per cent or S$5,000 to close at S$63,000.

For goods vehicles and buses, the premium rose by about 1 per cent or S$475 to S$57,809.

For motorcycles, the COE premium increased by about 3 per cent or S$51 to S$1,852.

Car dealers said the results of the bidding exercise were expected.

Ron Lim, general manager of Tan Chong Motors, said: "What we are seeing today is a rebound of the two rounds of correction. Conversely for Category A, customers are also holding back for more correction. So that's why today we are seeing further correction in Category A.

"Overall we are seeing an almost 14 per cent correction from the high side in early August. I believe if Category B is any indication, it could set the tone for what's going to happen to Category A in the next bid provided the buyers start coming in."(AN-55/channelnewsasia.com)