Squeeze on COE supply pulls sales down by 30% but fewer cars
scrapped or exported By Christopher Tan, Senior Correspondent,
Straits Times
NEW car sales slowed by nearly 30 per cent last year on the back of
a big cut in COE supply. According to Land Transport Authority
data, 68,862 new cars rolled off showroom floors last year, 29.3
per cent fewer than in 2008 and the lowest number in seven
years.
But because far fewer cars were scrapped or exported, the car
population grew despite the drop in sales. Car numbers rose by 4.8
per cent to 566,608 by end-December, busting the Government's 1.5
per cent growth cap.
Overall, the vehicle population inched upwards by 3.4 per cent to
925,518. Car owners have put the brakes on buying - choosing to
hold on to their current vehicles - in recent years. Reasons
include the financial turmoil that gripped the world from the
second half of 2008 to late last year, as well as the huge loans
that many had incurred on cars between 2003 and 2008.
As 80 per cent of cars here are below four years old, dealers said
there is naturally a lower demand for replacements, which in turn
reduced the supply of certificates of entitlement
(COEs).
This contrasts with sales only 10 years ago when Singapore
motorists were trading in their vehicles which were as new as two
years old.