THE lowest price and the average price for a Shanghai private car plate rose slightly from last month despite a record number of license tags on sale over the weekend at the August auction.

Shanghai municipal government offered 8,000 plates this month, the most since the auction system began in 2000.

But the larger quota also drew a large crowd of bidders, which led to the higher prices.

The average plate price rose to 46,897 yuan (US$6,171), a 316 yuan increase from July, according to the Shanghai International Commodity Auction Co, the sale's organizer.

The lowest winning bid jumped 1,300 yuan to 46,500 yuan from last month.

There were 12,943 bidders joining the competition, up 25 percent from July and the highest number this year.

Dealers said the crowd of bidders increased because nearby cities tightened controls on car registration and forced locals to look for tags in their hometown. Plate costs can be as low as 3,000 yuan in other cities in the region.

Shanghai's government raised the monthly plate quota after auction prices pushed repeatedly to new highs amid booming car sales.

Industry analysts forecast that plate prices will continue to rise next month during the prime car sales season. The next auction will be held on September 15.