Netizen comments on price increase of COE for motorcycles

Singapore — A member of the public remarked on the price of a motorcycle COE on Facebook. He put up a post in a Facebook group named "Complaint Singapore" to speak up about the spike in prices. In the screenshot he included, the price of a Certificate of Entitlement (COE) for a motorcycle was stated to be S$8,899, which meant that it had climbed up by roughly $210 or 2.4 per cent. [caption id="attachment_372489" align="aligncenter" width="448"] Photo: Facebook Screengrab[/caption] The netizen wrote that even owning a motorcycle in Singapore had grown costly and that the price of a motorcycle COE was just a hundred dollars shy of $9,000. He added that some first-hand Class 2B motorcycles are priced around $4,000, which meant that the amount needed to purchase a new COE for motorcycles could be used to purchase two new motorbikes instead. [caption id="attachment_372488" align="aligncenter" width="525"] Photo: Facebook Screengrab[/caption] A few netizens remarked that they predicted the premiums for motorcycles would continue to rise and eventually hit $10,000 in the near future. [caption id="attachment_372492" align="aligncenter" width="549"] Photo: Facebook Screengrab[/caption] Some suggested that having different categories for motorcycle COEs, like for cars, might be more suitable instead. [caption id="attachment_372491" align="aligncenter" width="541"] Photo: Facebook Screengrab[/caption] Yet another netizen mentioned that much more people were purchasing motorcycles recently, which drove up the demand and consequently led to an increase in prices for the COEs. [caption id="attachment_372490" align="aligncenter" width="579"] Photo: Facebook Screengrab[/caption] The supply of motorcycle COEs was reported to have decreased by over a quarter during the Aug-Oct period, whereas the supply of car COEs, including for those in the open category, decreased only by 6.6 per cent. Taking the recent Covid-19 restrictions into consideration, the demand for car COEs is expected to experience little or no increase. The price of COEs for 1,600cc and below for cars dropped from $47,010 to $45,189 while prices of COEs for cars above 1,600cc fell from $47,010 to $45,189. You Zi Xuan is an intern at The Independent SG. /TISG