( dpa )- Customers eager for quick cash to celebrate the Chinese New Year are increasing turning to pawnshops with gold, jewellery , laptops and even mobile phones, a survey said Monday.
Pawnshops in Singapore told The Straits Times that business has increased by more than 20 per cent over the weeks leading up to the holiday.
Gold and jewellery remain the mainstay of valuables pawned, but some shops are taking in items such as branded watches and bags by Louis Vuitton accompanied by receipts.
"Some of our regulars are really desperate and have no more gold or jewellery left to pawn, so we accept their mobile phones or laptops to help them tide through their rough spot," the newspaper quoted a pawnshop owner as saying.