The first COE tender for April saw a mixture of hikes and drops in premiums. With news of an increase in COE supply to start from May, buyers of small cars seem to have taken a more conservative approach, which resulted in a slight dip in prices.

Based on the number of cars, which were scrapped in the first two months of 2014, up to 25 percent more COEs will be available in the period between May to July.

However, the news did little to dampen the demand for big cars - which saw both Cat B and Cat E to hover at the $84,000 mark.

Premiums for Cat A, for cars up to 1,600cc in displacement and no more than 130bhp, ended at $77,400 - a slight drop of $1,202 or 1.5 percent from $78,602 in the last tender. 

Cat B COE premiums for larger cars with more than 130bhp or engine displacement larger than 1,600cc saw the greatest change in this exercise with a hike of $1,604 or 1.9 percent. It ended the bidding tender at $84,504.

Premiums for the Open Category, or Cat E, ended at $84,100, a minute increase of $99 from $84,001 in the last tender.