Car plate prices surge


CAR plate prices in Shanghai rebounded sharply this month from December as more bidders joined the auction yesterday and fewer plates were available. The average price for a license plate jumped to 38,771 yuan (US$5,893), up 22,801 yuan from last month, according to Shanghai International Commodity Auction Co. But this month's average price was still the second lowest since March. December's average of 15,970 yuan was the lowest in seven years. Last month, the average price unexpectedly dropped nearly 30,000 yuan.

More than 30,000 bidders joined this auction - nearly three times as many as last month and the most since April 2008. Some bidders were hoping prices would stay low. However, the lowest bid in January skyrocketed 27,900 yuan from last month to 38,300 yuan. Auto sales boomed in December as buyers rushed to make purchases before the government scraped a preferential tax measure.

Passenger car sales in China jumped an annual 18.6 percent to 1.31 million units last month. The government reduced the plate supply from 9,000 in December to 8,000 this month, creating more upward pressure on prices. On the second-hand market, car plate prices held steady around 40,000 yuan. The average price for a car plate in Shanghai rose to 38,944 yuan last year from 32,008 yuan in 2009. Some potential buyers said prices are too high. "My ideal price is around 20,000 yuan," said a car saleswoman surnamed Wang. "I would not spend 40,000 yuan on a license plate when I can use almost the same amount to buy a small car."

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